In an important move towards transition with the 2027 ICC World Cup in view, the selectors on Saturday replaced Rohit Sharma with Shubman Gill as the ODI captain for the upcoming tour of Australia.
The decision also underlines Gill's transition as an all-format leader. At 26, Gill now holds formal leadership roles in all three formats, serving as Test and ODI captain, as well as T20I vice-captain.
Rohit, however, features in the 15-member squad for the upcoming Australia Tour, along with Virat Kohli. Shreyas Iyer has been named vice-captain for the three-match series. The ODIs are scheduled to be played in Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne between October 19 and 25, and will be followed by a five-match T20 series.
Rohit, 38, served as India’s full-time ODI captain from December 2021. During his tenure, he led the side in 56 ODIs, winning 42, losing 12, with one tie and a no-result. Under his captaincy, India claimed the 2018 Asia Cup as stand-in captain and the 2023 Asia Cup as full-time skipper, and reached the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup, culminating in a Champions Trophy victory.
Leading pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been rested for the ODI leg of the tour to manage his workload, while promising left-hander Yashasvi Jaiswal has been recalled to the 50-over setup after a string of consistent performances in T20 internationals.
Chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar confirmed that Rohit has been told about the change in captaincy, but kept it open-ended when asked if he and Kohli will play the 2027 World Cup. "Yes. I mean that is the format they are playing at the moment and we have picked them. As far as the 2027 ODI World Cup is concerned, I don't think we need to talk about it today, obviously with the captaincy change, that's generally the thought," said Agarkar, who reportedly coordinated the decision with head coach Gautam Gambhir and BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia.
Asked how the former skipper had taken the decision, Agarkar came up with a terse reply: "That is something between the selection committee and Rohit." Agarkar also made it clear that with very few ODIs being played nowadays, it is not possible to look at three different captains as it hampers the general planning of the squad.
"Firstly, it's practically impossible to have three different captains for three formats, just in terms of planning. The 2027 World Cup is a huge part of this committee's plan and Gill needs to be given time to settle down into the role," he said.
Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra reacted to the appointment, saying: “Didn't see Gill's appointment coming this soon.”
ODI squad for Australia tour: Shubman Gill (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal.
T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (Captain), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar.
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