'Hum Unko Aek Saal Nahi De Paayein': Mohammad Kaif Gives His Honest Verdict On Shubman Gill Replacing Rohit Sharma As ODI Captain

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced India's T20I and ODI squad for the Australia tour. After months of speculations, Shubman Gill has succeeded Rohit Sharma as the skipper of the Indian ODI side. Gill will handle the reins of the Indian ODI team starting with the three-match ODI series against Australia. Gill's appointment as the ODI skipper clearly means that India have started to prepare for the 2027 ODI WC.

Mohammad Kaif Reacts To Rohit Sharma Losing ODI Captaincy

Rohit Sharma losing the ODI captaincy and Gill taking over has divided fans and cricket experts. Rohit Sharma recently led India to their third Champions Trophy victory and had a win percentage of over 70 in the ODIs. Chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, had said that it gets pretty tough to handle three captains for two different formats and hence Shubman Gill was given the ODI captaincy while looking at the future.

Ex-India player Mohammad Kaif gave his honest take on the matter, and he felt that the Indian team management should have given one extra year to Rohit, considering the fact that he won two ICC trophies in two years in his captaincy.

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"Rohit Sharma gave 16 years to India, and we couldn't give him even one more year as captain. In the last match of the Champions Trophy in Dubai, Rohit Sharma was the Player of the Match. There, he brought the trophy home. In the 2024 T20 World Cup, India won the trophy, and the trophy is in his name. He showed greatness by retiring there, saying, We've won the 2024 World Cup, now let new players come in.' He stayed out of the limelight for some time; someone else captained. When new players came, he lost his place," said Mohammad Kaif in a social media video which has now gone viral.

ALSO READ | India Start To Road To World Cup 2027, Here's The List Of ODI Series And Matches Shubman Gill Will Captain After Replacing Rohit Sharma

Dissecting Rohit Sharma's Captaincy Statistics

Rohit Sharma has won two ICC trophies as the Indian captain. He led India to the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy. The 'Hitman' led India in 56 ODIs and ended up winning 42 out of them. Sharma, as the ODI skipper, has a win percentage of 76.