Ex-IND Star Confident Shubman Gill Will Be Next ODI Captain; What Does That Mean for Rohit?

New Test skipper Shubman Gill led from the front as India drew 2-2 in the five-match Test series in England. He scored over 750 runs and also had a top score of over 250. He impressed with the willow and as captain. While India could not win a Test series in England after 18 years, they did manage to avoid a third straight Test series loss after going down 3-0 to New Zealand and 3-1 to Australia.

Big Names Missing

Before the series started there were several doubts about India performing under an inexperienced leader with many heavyweights not in the side for a number of reasons. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin had retired, Mohammed Shami was not fit enough and Shreyas Iyer got left out. Also, Jasprit Bumrah would only play three Tests meaning India would not get his full services in the series. But in the end, the result was satisfactory. In fact, if Bumrah had not overstepped at Headingley and Yashasvi had taken his catches plus our batters had held on a little longer at Lord’s, India would have won 4-0 or at least 3-1.

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Gill Next ODI Skipper?

Meanwhile, former India player Mohammad Kaif feels that Gill should now get the ODI captaincy as well. Rohit is still the ODI skipper, having led India to the Champions Trophy title nearly five months back. But he is 38 and in the twilight of his career. While the man himself wants to be around till the 2027 ODI World Cup, he may no longer be at the helm by then.

“He will get the ODI captaincy as well because we don’t know how long Rohit Sharma will continue as captain. Gill is ready to take over. He scores in white-ball. He has performed well as captain here in Tests and led from the front. When you go with a young team, you have to do both things – score with the bat and do well as captain. A brilliant tour for him overall,” Kaif said while speaking on his YouTube channel.

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“Shubman Gill, as captain, created opportunities with both hands in this series. When he became captain, there were many questions as to why he was made captain, looking at his Test record. A young captain reached England under a lot of pressure with a young team. He answered with his bat and it came to a point where he was compared to breaking Sir Don Bradman’s record. Such a strong comeback with the bat,” he added.

Rohit Sharma’s Future

Rohit retired from T20Is in 2024 along with Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja after winning the T20 World Cup. Just before the squad for England was announced, he also called time on his Test career. Kohli followed some days later. ODIs are the only format he still plays and he has been doing so for over 18 years. Will he be around till the next World Cup? Let’s wait and watch!