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Gautam Gambhir, Ajit Agarkar and Shubman Gill (Getty Images)
NEW DELHI: In a major leadership shake-up, Shubman Gill has been named India’s ODI captain, replacing Rohit Sharma ahead of the upcoming series in Australia, a decision India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar described as “practically impossible” to avoid. Speaking at a press conference in Ahmedabad, Agarkar explained the rationale behind consolidating leadership across formats, stressing the need for long-term planning.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“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 [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 said.Gill, 26, who already captains India in Tests, will now lead both ODI and Test teams while serving as vice-captain in T20Is under Suryakumar Yadav.
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Addressing concerns about the young Punjab-born batter burning out, Agarkar added: “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 led India to a third Champions Trophy title earlier this year, has been informed about the change. “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,” Agarkar added.India’s three-match ODI series against Australia begins 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), andYashasvi 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.
