Shubman Gill Named India’s New ODI Captain, Replaces Rohit Sharma in ‘Best Interest of Team’
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar claims that having three different captains in three formats is not practical, with Suryakumar Yadav firmly established as the captain in Twenty20 Internationals.
Ankush Pandey
The national selection committee chose the team for the three-match ODI series in Australia later this month, and in a decision that represents a change of leadership, it named Shubman Gill as India's One-Day International captain in place of Rohit Sharma on Saturday.
The two ODI titans of Indian cricket in this era, Rohit and Virat Kohli, have been included in the squad. However, 26-year-old Gill, who is also the Test captain, was promoted in anticipation of the 2027 World Cup, when Rohit will be 40.
The Indian Express has gathered that ODI captain and selectors chairman Ajit Agarkar spoke with Rohit again on Friday night after informing him beforehand about the decision to dismiss him.
Rohit led India to two consecutive ICC white-ball trophies. Before the selection committee convened on the sidelines of Saturday's India-West Indies Test match in Ahmedabad, head coach Gautam Gambhir was also consulted. During the lunch break, Gill joined the meeting.
Suryakumar Yadav was kept as the T20I captain, as was to be expected, with Gill serving as his deputy, while Shreyas Iyer was selected vice-captain of the ODI team. Having three different captains in three different formats was "not practical," according to Agarkar, who stated that the captaincy change was made "in the best interest of the team."
A source told The Indian Express that Kohli, who turns 37 next month, had contacted the selectors earlier to ask for clarification over his future with the ODI team.
Rohit and Kohli, who currently exclusively play for India in One-Day Internationals, will be added to future squads based on their merits. In order to stay sharp, they have been requested to play domestic white-ball cricket as there aren't many ODI matches before the T20 World Cup in early 2019.
When asked if the two seasoned batsmen would be able to play till the 2027 World Cup, Agarkar responded, "That is the format they are playing at the moment and we picked them." Regarding the 2027 World Cup, I don't think we should discuss it now because, as is evident, the captaincy change is the main idea.
"That is a conversation between me and Rohit or the selectors and Rohit," Agarkar responded when asked how Rohit felt about losing his captaincy. However, as I mentioned, he has obviously been informed about it.
Since there aren't many ODI matches left before the 2027 World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, Agarkar stated that one of the main reasons for selecting Gill as captain was to give him ample time to settle into the position.
Practical considerations
The selectors thought about keeping Rohit as captain, but they didn't want a scenario where he suffered an injury or fitness problem closer to the World Cup and a new captain had to step in at the last minute. The selectors also made it apparent that it was not practical to have three captains in three different forms, with Suryakumar serving as the T20I captain.
"First off, merely in terms of planning, having three separate captains for three formats is nearly impossible. Naturally, you have to start considering the location of the next World Cup at some point.
Since this format is currently played the least, you don't have a lot of games to give the next player—or if there will be another player—enough time to get ready or make plans.
We don't yet know how many one-day matches we might play in the run-up to the World Cup, but we still have two years left, which may seem like a long time," Agarkar stated.
The Indian white-ball team won two ICC trophies under Rohit's leadership: the Champions Trophy this year and the T20 World Cup in the West Indies last year. He did, however, resign as captain for the final Test in Sydney following a dismal Test series against Australia.
In May, he announced his retirement from the format, which allowed Gill to be named captain. In May, Kohli also declared his retirement from Test cricket. Gill scored 754 runs in five games in England during his first Test series as captain, averaging 75.40 and hitting four hundreds.
If India hadn't won the ICC Champions Trophy under Rohit, would it have been simpler to fire him as captain? Agarkar responded, "Even if he hadn't won the Champions Trophy, it would have been a difficult decision because of how good he has been for India."
However, there are instances when you have to consider the future and your position as a team before deciding what is best for the group. It may be now or perhaps six months from now. Those are the calls that we must, I suppose. Australia will host the ODIs in Sydney, Adelaide, and Melbourne from October 19 to October 25. A five-match T20I series will follow.
