“A significant misconception among Indian cricket fans” - Former India captain’s huge statement on Shubman Gill after AUS vs IND 2025 1st ODI

Australia v India Captains Media Call - Source: Getty
Shubman Gill's ODI captaincy debut got off to a forgettable start in Perth [Credit: Getty]

Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar dismissed the misconception that Rohit Sharma could perform below his best, having been replaced as ODI captain by Shubman Gill. Ahead of the ongoing three-match ODI series in Australia, Gill took over the captaincy mantle from Rohit in the 50-over format.

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The move sparked several varied opinions among fans and former players, given Rohit's phenomenal success as skipper. The 38-year-old led India to their first ICC ODI title since 2013 in their most recent ODI assignment before the Australian tour.

Furthermore, Rohit boasts an excellent record as ODI skipper with 42 wins in 56 outings.

Talking about the dynamic between Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli with Shubman Gill in his column for Sportstar, Gavaskar said:

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"A significant misconception among Indian cricket fans is that if a player is replaced as captain, he will attempt to undermine the new captain by not performing to the best of his ability. Nothing can be further from the truth, for the simple fact is that if a captain has been replaced and then doesn’t perform, he could be out of the team altogether. So, no player, however aggrieved he may feel at losing the captaincy, is ever going to underperform deliberately."
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He continued:

"With that misconception still going strong, many are questioning if young Shubman Gill will be able to handle two former captains, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who are part of the three-match One-Day International series against Australia. Gill has gone out of his way to say that his equation with them hasn’t changed simply because he is the captain now."
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Unfortunately, Rohit's first game after being replaced as captain and under Gill went south, with the veteran batter scoring only a 14-ball eight in the opening ODI against Australia in Perth.

"He will only benefit by having these two stalwarts by his side" - Sunil Gavaskar

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Sunil Gavaskar believes Shubman Gill will benefit massively from having Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the Indian ODI side. Like Rohit, Kohli also struggled with the bat in the series opener against Australia as he was dismissed for an eight-ball duck.

"If anything, he will only benefit by having these two stalwarts by his side. Both would be happy to offer suggestions if asked, and what could be better for a captain leading in this format for the first time than to have two of the greatest ODI players playing in his team?" said Gavaskar (via the aforementioned source).

Kohli and Rohit have combined to play 577 ODIs, scoring over 25,000 runs between them. Meanwhile, Shubman Gill was also recently appointed India's Test captain ahead of their England tour, after Rohit retired from the format.

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Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran
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