The BCCI Men’s Senior Selection Committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, took a tough call of sacking Rohit Sharma as ODI captain when they sit together to pick the squad for the upcoming Australia tour on Saturday (October 4).
Despite leading India to the Champions Trophy win earlier this year, the 38-year-old Rohit was not considered for the leadership role. With the ODI World Cup scheduled in two years’ time, the baton was passed over to Shubman Gill, who was also named the Test skipper following Rohit's retirement in May 2025.
Shortly after the announcement, the BCCI released a special video capturing Gill’s journey from his Test captaincy elevation earlier this year to his new role as ODI leader.
The video started with a flashback to May 24, 2025, when Gill was named India’s Test captain. Reflecting on that milestone, the 26-year-old had said, “That is definitely a bit overwhelming. As a young kid, when anyone starts playing cricket, they want to play for India — and not just play for India but to play Test cricket for a very long time. To be able to get this opportunity is a great honour. Like you said, it’s a big responsibility.”
Fast forward to October 4, 2025, as Gill was appointed India’s ODI captain, he acknowledged his emotional connection with Ahmedabad, where he has achieved several of his career milestones.
Notably, Shubman Gill was playing his first home Test as captain at the Narendra Modi Stadium when he was announced the ODI skipper.
“Difficult to put it in words, this state is very special for me — from captaining my IPL team, to being named Test captain, and leading my first Test at home — all of it happened here. This venue has always been very special for me,” Gill said.
He added, “It’s the biggest honour to be able to lead your country in one-day cricket, and to lead a side that has done so well. It’s immense pride for me and I hope I’ll be able to do great.”
Looking ahead to India’s build-up toward the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa, Gill emphasized his long-term vision and commitment.
“I think we have about 20 ODIs before we play the World Cup. The ultimate goal is the World Cup in South Africa. Everything we play now — every player we try — is to ensure we’re fully ready to win that World Cup.”
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.
