The third round of the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) 2025-26 was played on Monday, December 29th. However, veteran batsmen Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were absent from the field for Delhi and Mumbai, respectively. While Delhi faced Saurashtra at the KSCA Stadium in Alur, Mumbai played against Chhattisgarh at the Jaipuria Vidyalaya Ground in Jaipur.

Why Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma not playing the third round of the Vijay Hazare Trophy?

Virat Kohli played brilliant innings in his two matches for Delhi. He contributed a brilliant 131 against Andhra Pradesh and 77 against Gujarat. Rohit Sharma, meanwhile, played a blistering 155 against Sikkim, but was dismissed for a golden duck in the match against Uttarakhand. Now the question is why Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma did not play in the third round of the Vijay Hazare Trophy?

Rohit and Kohli had agreed to play a limited number of matches in this tournament. Both veterans had committed to playing in only two matches, and they have fulfilled that commitment. Kohli and Rohit Sharma played for their respective teams in the first two matches of the tournament.

Now, it depends on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma whether they want to play more matches in the current tournament. India will also play a three-match ODI series against New Zealand on home soil starting January 11th, so both players will be focused on this international series. However, according to a Cricbuzz report, Kohli may play another match for Delhi against Railways on January 6th. The report also states that Rohit will no longer play for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy .

According to reports, fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Hardik Pandya may be rested from the ODI series against New Zealand. This decision will be made keeping in mind upcoming major tournaments, especially the 2026 T20 World Cup. However, both players will participate in the T20 International series against New Zealand, for which the squad has already been announced.