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Gill Or Rohit? Former South Africa Batter Makes Bold Captaincy Choice For 2027 World Cup
Follow UsGill already leads India in the Tests and was recently elevated as the T20I vice-captain
Rohit Sharma is no longer an active player in Tests and T20Is. That leaves only ODIs for him, and he is keen to play for India in the 2027 World Cup. It is similar for Virat Kohli, who retired in Tests and T20Is, and like Rohit, is keen to play in the World Cup in 2027.
However, the question is: How long can Shubman Gill be kept out of leading the ODI side? He is already leading India in Tests and is the vice-captain in T20Is and ODIs, making him next in line to take over. Will he be the captain for the 2027 World Cup? Former South Africa batter Daryll Cullinan certainly thinks so.
"They [Kohli and Rohit] need to be playing quality cricket for the next two years! Far more cricket than less cricket," Cullinan told Hindustan Times.
"Yes, Gill for captaincy, irrespective of whether Rohit is playing."
Cullinan believes that both Rohit and Kohli have the ability to walk into any team solely as a batter, given the amount of experience they have under their belt.
"Well, I think from an ability and experience point of view, they could play, I don't think there's any doubt in that, but they'd have to be on the ground of international cricket. If I were the coach or convener of selectors, because no matter how good you are, thinking that you can just play a few games or select a few games, not put in the hours and then step in and think you're going to perform, no, that doesn't work that way," Cullinan said.
"So it's a bit of a catch-22, I'm not saying they need to be on the circuit all the time, but they need to have played a serious amount of cricket, especially going into the World Cup, so they're in the right physical, mental frame of mind, the grind of international cricket, being fit, then I would say yes, but anything less than that I'd say no, India move on, because that certainly doesn't work, and that's in my view."
As things stand, India play just nine more ODIs till the start of the 2027 World Cup. Three of them will be played against Australia next month, which will mark the return of Kohli and Rohit for the first time since the Champions Trophy final in March.