The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), led by chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar, decided to remove Rohit Sharma from the ODI captaincy and hand over the role to Shubman Gill, marking a significant leadership change. Despite Rohit leading India to the Champions Trophy victory just eight months prior, the decision was driven by a strategic vision focused on unifying captaincy across formats and planning for the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. Ajit Agarkar explained that having three different captains for Tests, ODIs, and T20Is was practically impossible for team planning and continuity.
Agarkar emphasized, “It’s practically impossible to have three different captains for three formats, just in terms of planning. You’ve got to start looking where the next World Cup will be; it is also a format that is played the least now, so you don’t get many games to give the next guy enough time to prepare himself.” The decision, agreed upon in tandem with head coach Gautam Gambhir and BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, aimed to give Shubman Gill adequate opportunities to settle into the role ahead of major tournaments.
Though Rohit Sharma had remarkable success as ODI captain including Champions Trophy 2025, Asia Cup 2023, and the 2023 ODI World Cup final appearance Agarkar noted the difficult nature of the decision, saying, “Even if he had not won the Champions Trophy, it would have been a difficult decision because of how good he’s been for India. But you have to look at what’s coming forward, what’s in the best interest of the team.”
Agarkar On WC 2027
Agarkar refrained from providing a clear outlook on Rohit and Virat Kohli’s future participation in the 2027 World Cup but mentioned, “That’s the format they are at the moment playing; we picked them as far as the 2027 World Cup is concerned. I don’t think we need to talk about it today.”
Rohit was informed about the captaincy change during a press conference in Ahmedabad. The committee’s intent was to implement the leadership transition early enough to prepare Gill for sustained success. “If you’re going to make that call, you want to try and make it reasonably early and give the other guy enough chance to get that confidence of leading another format,” added Agarkar.
This move reflects the BCCI’s focus on consolidating leadership under a single captain, optimizing team strategy, and preparing for the upcoming World Cup cycle. With Shubman Gill having already impressed as Test captain, the management envisions a seamless passage of leadership to him in the ODI format as well.
India’s ODI squad: 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.