3 Indian players returning to international cricket during Australia tour

Overview

• Rohit Sharma last played for India during the Champions Trophy 2025 and was last in action during the Qualifier 2 of the IPL 2025
• Much like Rohit, Virat Kohli last played for India in the Champions Trophy 2025 and announced his retirement from Tests before the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025
• Shreyas Iyer played in the Mumbai T20 League and other domestic cricket tournaments, but hasn't featured in international cricket since the Champions Trophy 2025

Since the Champions Trophy 2025, some of the key players haven't played for India in international cricket. Indian players have been a part of the tournaments like the IPL, Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Asia Cup, and the Test series against the West Indies since then. However, some of the key players who were a part of the Champions Trophy winning team, haven't played for India since then.

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Most of them are those who have retired from both Tests and T20Is. Apart from them, many players who are on the Australian tour, have played for India either in Tests or T20Is. Only a handful of cricketers will be playing their first match for India since the Champions Trophy 2025, if they do get picked to play in the XI against Australia.

3 Indian players returning to international cricket during Australia tour

Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer last played for India in the Champions Trophy 2025. The middle order batter played a key role in India's triumph in the tournament, being a rock solid batter at number 4. His consistent performances in the tournament helped India to win its third CT title. However, Iyer hasn't gotten a chance to play for India since then.

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Iyer played a key role in Punjab Kings becoming the finalists in the IPL 2025. He had a terrific season with the bat and was expected to get the Asia Cup call-up. However, it wasn't the case, as Iyer wasn't even named among the standby players. However, he's picked for the ODI series against Australia and is likely to start in the XI.

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma led India to its third CT title win with a great performance in the final. The star batter played the IPL 2025 and announced his retirement from Tests, as the Indian team's management was looking for options beyond him. Having already retired from T20Is, Rohit effectively became a one-format batter in international cricket.

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After a massive weight loss, Rohit will be back in action in Australia in what could be the beginning of the end of his international cricket. There's a good chance of Rohit retiring from all formats after the ODI World Cup 2027. Hence, fans will be awaiting to catch the glimpses of Rohit's batting before be bids adieu.

Virat Kohli

Much like Rohit, Virat Kohli has also retired from both Tests and T20Is. It's interesting to note that both Virat and Rohit retired together from T20Is after winning the T20 World Cup in 2024 and did nearly the same in Tests. Both are effectively international cricketers only in ODIs, as of October 2025.

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Kohli last played cricket in the IPL 2025 final for RCB. Since then, he hasn't been in action. If he gets a chance to start in the XI in the series against Australia, Kohli would have played his first international match in over half a year since the Champions Trophy 2025 final against New Zealand.