Robin Uthappa Backs Shubman Gill as India’s ODI Captain Ahead of Australia Tour
New Delhi: Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa has expressed support for the BCCI’s decision to appoint Shubman Gill as India’s ODI captain for the upcoming tour of Australia. Uthappa highlighted that Rohit Sharma’s age should be considered for the 2027 ODI World Cup, noting that the 36-year-old will be 41 by then.
The BCCI announced India’s ODI and T20I squads for the bilateral series against Australia on Saturday. The tour, starting October 19, will feature three ODIs and five T20Is.
While big names like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will return to action for the first time since the 2025 Champions Trophy final, the surprise was Rohit stepping down from ODI captaincy for the Australian tour. Shubman Gill has been named captain, with in-form Shreyas Iyer as his deputy.
Uthappa, on his YouTube channel, explained the reasoning behind the move:
“He’s going to be, in all honesty, 41 when that World Cup comes around. You have to keep that in consideration. I think the decision to hand over captaincy should happen when the stakes are low rather than high—you don’t want a repeat of what happened in Australia.”
Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar revealed he personally informed Rohit of the decision to relieve him of captaincy, handing the leadership baton to Gill two years before the 2027 World Cup. The move was intended to give Gill ample time to settle into the role before the marquee event.
Uthappa added that Rohit remains too talented to face setbacks and expressed hope he stays fit to avoid any uncomfortable situations similar to the Australia tour:
“Rohit is too good a player to face situations like that again. If he keeps fit, there’s no question—Rohit and Virat will be a key part of this team.”
He also noted that while Rohit’s form is unlikely to dip significantly, limited cricket might affect his reflexes, with his play primarily confined to the IPL, ODIs, and select domestic matches.
Since first taking the ODI captaincy in 2017, Rohit has led India in 56 ODIs, winning 42, losing 12, with one no-result and one tie—a remarkable 75% win rate. Under his leadership, India clinched the 2018 and 2023 ODI Asia Cups, finished runners-up in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup at home, and won the ICC Champions Trophy in Dubai in 2025.
Rohit’s full-time ODI captaincy from February 2022 saw India win 34 out of 46 matches, with just 10 losses. In 46 ODIs during this period, he scored 1,963 runs at an average of 47.87 and a strike rate of 116.84, including three centuries and 15 fifties. Among captains with a minimum of 20 ODIs, Rohit recorded the best strike rate.
Looking ahead, Gill is focused on the 2027 World Cup, with India expected to play around 20 ODIs in the lead-up. The new captain aims to lift the trophy in South Africa.
India ODI Squad: Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal.
