Captain switch: Rohit out, Gill in; Iyer named Gill’s deputy | Eye on 2027 World Cup

Coimbatore: One cannot fault the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for taking pragmatic decisions on the future. Displacing Rohit Sharma as the ODI captain and installing Shubman Gill as the new skipper is in order. At the same time, the decision to appoint Shreyas Iyer as deputy to Gill is a clear plan for the future, with the ICC ODI World Cup in 2027 becoming important.

Indeed, the writing was on the wall for Rohit Sharma, who has not played any international cricket after the Champions Trophy in Dubai earlier this year. Having retired from Test cricket, the only format available for Rohit was the ODI. That the BCCI has included him and Virat Kohli for the three ODIs against Australia, in an away series, is strange. Some say, this could be a farewell of sorts, though chairman of the selection committee, Ajit Agarkar was not clear on this topic at the press conference in Mumbai on Saturday.

On a day when India crushed lowly West Indies in the first Test in Ahmedabad, it is clear, Gill is seen as the future leader. Looking at 2027 is important, and whether Rohit and Virat will be around till then is anybody’s guess. “I don’t think we need to talk about it today,” said Ajit Agarkar. “That is the format they are playing at the moment and we have picked them,” added Agarkar. This, also, is vague, since India have hardly played ODIs after the Champions Trophy.

At one point of time, there was speculation if India can have three different captains for three formats. However, that has not been accepted within the BCCI and Gill’s elevation, along with Shreyas also being offered a leadership role reflects the thinking. The virtual selection committee on Saturday saw Gill being invited.

Back to Rohit and Virat Kohli, their contribution to Indian cricket cannot be doubted. However, by 2027, Kohli will be 39 and Rohit 40. These two players are losing favour as well. For example, recent fitness tests saw Kohli not keen on coming to India. He took the test in London, which is weird. It is learnt that Rohit Sharma has lost weight and went to the Centre For Excellence as well in Bengaluru recently.

A section of fans feel this tour to Australia is like a farewell for the two former India captains, more so, since they ended their Test career abruptly. It is also to be noted that the BCCI has stressed, all cricketers need to make themselves available for domestic cricket, including Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

That is also fraught with risks, since youngsters can do the damage in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, which starts this December.Will Rohit take this decision bravely or he could quit, is being guessed. The way things have changed, the former skipper will be more than puzzled. For once, the BCCI cannot be faulted for not planning ahead.