Shubman Gill is set to take over the leadership in ODIs from skipper Rohit Sharma.
After a successful tour of England in his first assignment as the Test captain of India, Shubman Gill is now also set to take over the leadership in ODIs from skipper Rohit Sharma. On October 4, when the 25-year-old was leading the national side against the West Indies in his maiden home red-ball series, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) made the major announcement.
The batter acknowledged how special the city of Ahmedabad has always been to him. Gill leads the state-based Indian Premier League (IPL) team Gujarat Titans. Coincidentally, his first home Test fixture as the skipper also happened to take place in the same venue, where India registered a dominant victory over Roston Chase and Co. in just three days of play.
“It is the biggest honour to be able to lead your country in the One Day and to be able to lead a side that has done so well, it’s immense pride for me. I hope I’ll be able to do great,” stated Gill in a BCCI.tv video.
Coming into the ODI leadership prospects, Gill has already set his eyes on the upcoming edition of the 50-over World Cup in 2027. The batter emphasised a strong build-up ahead of the mega ICC event in South Africa to complete the unfulfilled feat of the ICC Men’s CWC 2023.
Notably, India had registered an unbeaten 10-match streak in the previous edition of the 50-over World Cup at home, under Rohit’s captaincy. But the Men in Blue stumbled in the Final hurdle as Pat Cummins’ Australia defeated them by six wickets to win a record sixth ODI title.
“I think we have about 20 ODIs before we play the World Cup. Obviously, the ultimate goal is the World Cup in South Africa. We’re going to try our best to be able to have a great season before we get to the World Cup and hopefully we will be fully ready when we go to South Africa and win that World Cup,” he added.
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The 25-year-old will begin his ODI captaincy with the upcoming three-match series in Australia. The series will kickoff on October 19 in Perth, followed by five T20Is, led by Suryakumar Yadav.
However, Gill has had a remarkable outing as the Indian skipper in the recently concluded five-Test series in England. With 754 runs, including three hundreds and a double century, the batter became the highest run-scorer of the inaugural Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series.
He also smashed several records, such as —most runs by an Indian skipper in a Test series, highest run-tally by an Indian batter in a red-ball series against England, most tons in a Test series by an Indian captain (by levelling with legendary Indian players like Sunil Gavaskar and Virat Kohli) and many more.
Moreover, under his leadership, India replicated their strong performance from 2022 to level the hard-fought series. Even after trailing 2-1 after the third fixture at Lord’s, they showcased commendable grit and determination to draw the penultimate fixture before claiming a stunning victory in the series final at The Oval. Fans would hope to see the youngster continue with the same momentum to carry forward Rohit’s legacy in the format.
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