Perth: Indian captain Shubman Gill on Saturday lauded the experience and prowess of senior stars Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, calling them “probably the best white-ball players in the world” ahead of the first ODI against Australia at the Optus Stadium in Perth.
The opening ODI of the three-match series will be played on Sunday, marking the much-awaited return of the “Ro-Ko” duo, who will don the Indian jersey together for the first time since the ICC Champions Trophy Final earlier this year.
“The kind of skills and experience they bring to the team is massive. They are probably the best white-ball players in the world,” Gill told reporters on the eve of the match.
Expressing his admiration for the two stalwarts, Gill said it was a privilege to lead them and that their hunger and consistency have always been a source of inspiration. He added that he wouldn’t hesitate to seek their inputs during crunch moments in the series.
“These are the players I idolised growing up. The way they played and the hunger they showed inspired me. It’s a huge honour to lead such legends and learn from them. I won’t be shy in taking their suggestions in tough situations,” Gill said.
This series marks Gill’s first ODI assignment as India’s captain, succeeding Rohit Sharma. The Men in Blue will play three ODIs followed by five T20Is on the tour.
The ODIs are scheduled for October 20, 23, and 25, followed by the T20Is from October 29 to November 8.
Gill’s rapid rise as a leader has been remarkable. Since taking over the Test captaincy after Rohit’s retirement from the format in May, he guided India to a 2-2 draw in England, amassing 754 runs at an average of 75.40, including a career-best 269.
India’s squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal.
