Follow UsFormer India batter Mohammad Kaif lambasted the Indian selectors and management for removing Rohit Sharma from ODI captaincy, and asserted that captaincy was effectively ‘snatched’ from the hands of the 38-year-old.
On October 4 (Saturday), Shubman Gill was officially appointed team India’s ODI skipper, bringing to an end Rohit’s captaincy era in Indian cricket. The management and the selectors went ahead with the move even though Rohit’s last tournament as ODI captain was an unbeaten championship run in the 2025 Champions Trophy.
"What wrong has Rohit Sharma done? It's very unfortunate that we didn’t get a long captaincy run from Rohit—not even four years," Kaif said, according to Times of India.
"A great batter, an outstanding leader, and as captain, he could have had an even more impressive record. When you snatch captaincy, I feel a player loses his right hand.”
Kaif further commented that he expected Rohit to lead India in the 2027 ODI WC, and give up captaincy after that.
"This was on expected lines, but I felt this would happen after the 2027 World Cup. The guy has quality, and he's also worked on his fitness. He had a realistic chance of playing in the 2027 World Cup," he said.
The former India batter also expressed concern about too many things happening too quickly for Gill. Gill is now the Test and ODI captain and T20I vice-captain, and Kaif insisted that the youngster has been ‘pressured’ into captaincy far too soon.
"However, the load falls on Gill. He's getting all of it in a hurry. It could also backfire. When you get so much responsibility in such a short time, it could affect performance," Kaif said.
"My point is: don’t overburden him. He captains in Tests, bats at No. 4, was made vice-captain in the Asia Cup, and will take over when Suryakumar Yadav steps aside.
"Now you've made him the ODI captain. I feel everything is being done in a hurry. A player never asks for captaincy.
"Everyone knows he didn't want it. You can't demand it, but everyone seems to like him a lot and considers him a captain for the future. The selectors, including Ajit Agarkar, have pressured him," he added.
Gill’s first assignment as ODI captain will be the three-match ODI series against Australia later this month. Rohit, on the other hand, will play the series as a specialist batter.