A significant leadership change has been announced for the Indian cricket team, with Shubman Gill stepping in as the new ODI captain, taking over from Rohit Sharma. This strategic decision was announced by India’s chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, who acknowledged the “practically impossible” nature of maintaining three separate captains across different formats.
Speaking at a press conference in Ahmedabad, Agarkar elaborated on the rationale behind this consolidation, emphasizing the importance of long-term planning, particularly with the 2027 World Cup in mind. “It’s practically impossible to have three different captains for three formats in terms of planning. You’ve got to start planning. You also play it [ODIs] the least. We are two years away [from the 2027 World Cup]. We don’t play as many games. It is a bit of a challenge with one-day cricket. The focus has been on the T20 World Cup. We will surely start planning for the ODI World Cup. It gives the next guy enough time,” Agarkar stated.
Gill, at 26 years old, already holds the Test captaincy and will now lead both the ODI and Test squads. He will also serve as the vice-captain for the T20I team, which will be led by Suryakumar Yadav.
When asked about potential burnout concerns for the young Punjab-born cricketer given his increased responsibilities, Agarkar expressed optimism. “Hopefully not. Still quite young. We saw what he did in England under immense pressure. Really positive signs there. We hope there’s no burnout. As team management, we try to manage it as best as possible. You’ve also got to give the guy enough time. He’s been the vice-captain in the ODI format for a while now. That’s how it works.”
Rohit Sharma, who recently led India to a third Champions Trophy title, was reportedly informed of this captaincy change. Agarkar commented, “We don’t play too many ODIs and we need to give the next guy enough time. How Rohit has taken the decision to change captain is between him and the selection committee.”
India’s upcoming schedule includes a three-match ODI series against Australia, commencing on October 19, followed by a five-match T20I series from October 29 to November 8.
India’s 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
India’s T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (VC), 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, and Washington Sundar.
