Shaarang Shringarpure, a renowned mimicry artist, recently honored Rohit Sharma’s ODI captaincy after the Mumbaikar was relieved of his leadership duties in the 50-over format. This significant change was announced by selectors for the upcoming Australia limited-overs series, with Shubman Gill now set to lead the ODI side and Suryakumar Yadav taking the helm for T20Is.
In a widely shared social media video, Shringarpure masterfully captured the distinct voices and styles of cricket icons such as Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Ravi Shastri, and Navjot Singh Sidhu. He humorously imagined their reactions and tributes to Rohit’s memorable stint as ODI captain. (A video showing the mimicry artist paying tribute to Rohit Sharma’s ODI captaincy is embedded here).
Rohit’s captaincy was concluded, with Gill stepping in, as the selectors strategically focus on the 2027 World Cup. This decision was revealed on a Saturday, with Rohit retaining his place in the 15-member squad alongside fellow veteran Virat Kohli for the forthcoming Australia tour.
During his tenure as ODI captain, the 38-year-old achieved a remarkable 76% winning percentage, leading the team to victory in 42 out of 56 matches. He stands alongside MS Dhoni as one of only two Indian captains to guide the team to three ICC white-ball finals, notably securing both the T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy titles. (A video summarizing Rohit Sharma’s captaincy era is embedded here).
Further leadership adjustments include Shreyas Iyer’s appointment as vice-captain for the three-match ODI series against Australia, scheduled to be played between October 19 and 25 in Sydney, Adelaide, and Melbourne. This ODI series will be followed by five T20 matches.
Chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, confirmed that the captaincy change had been discussed with Rohit Sharma, but he remained non-committal about the long-term future of both Rohit and Kohli regarding 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,” Agarkar stated.
When questioned about Rohit’s reaction to the decision, Agarkar responded: “I mean that is a conversation between me and Rohit or us (selectors) and Rohit. But like I said, of course, it has been communicated to him.”
Agarkar emphasized the logistical challenges of having three different captains for three formats, citing difficulties in planning. “Firstly, it’s practically impossible to have three different captains for three formats, just in terms of planning,” Agarkar explained.
The selection committee’s primary focus is now on the 2027 World Cup, with Agarkar discussing the limited opportunities available in ODI cricket for player and leadership development. “Obviously, at some stage, you have got to start looking at where the next World Cup is, it’s also a format which is played the least now, so you don’t get that many games to actually give the next guy or if there is going to be another guy that much time to prepare himself or plan.”
Agarkar also addressed the challenges posed by ODI cricket’s current scheduling and the constrained preparation time. “We are still two years away, it might look like a long time, but we don’t quite know how many one-day games we might play (and yet) closer to the World Cup we might end up playing a little bit more than what we have. But the last ODI we played was 8th or 9th of March in Champions Trophy and the next one we play is in October 19th, so it is a bit of a challenge with one-day cricket at the moment. Of course the focus has been on T20 World Cup, but slowly we will start planning for that World Cup to come, so it gives the next guy enough time to plan with whatever games that we have coming (up).”
Regarding the timing of the captaincy change, Agarkar explained the inevitability of the decision. “Even if he had not won the Champions Trophy it would have been a difficult decision because of how good he has been for India. But you have got to sometimes look at what is coming forward, where you stand as a team and eventually look at what is in the best interest of the team,” Agarkar said.
“Whether it is now or maybe six months later, those are the calls that I suppose we have put in place to make. Like I said, it is tough with one-day cricket at this point, because if you are going to make that call, you want to try and make it reasonably early and give the other guy enough chance to try and get that confidence of leading (in) another format, so that was the idea.”