Veteran Indian batter Rohit Sharma was all over the news after the announcement of the ODI and T20I squads for the upcoming tour of Australia on Saturday, October 4. In a stunner, the 38-year-old was axed as Team India's ODI captain with Shubman GillFkoh replacing him at the helm.Rohit has been one of India's most successful ODI captains, with an incredible winning percentage of 75 in 56 outings. Under him, the Men in Blue recently won the 2025 Champions Trophy in the UAE, going through the tournament unscathed.India also dominated the 2023 ODI World Cup under Rohit, winning all their matches until the heartbreaking final loss to Australia. Thus, the move to sack the veteran opener as captain came as a massive surprise to most fans and former players.While some welcomed the move, others questioned the rationale behind Rohit's removal from ODI captaincy.On that note, we look at five experts who lambasted Rohit Sharma's axing as India's ODI captain.#1 Harbhajan SinghFormer Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh admitted to being shocked when he heard the news of Shubman Gill replacing Rohit Sharma as ODI captain. Harbhajan believes Rohit should have continued as skipper for another few months or a year before Gill took over."To be honest, it's a bit of a shock for me to see Rohit not being the captain. If you're selecting Rohit Sharma, select him as captain, because he just recently won you the ICC Champions Trophy. Rohit has been one of the pillars of Indian cricket when it comes to white-ball formats. I think he should have been given at least this tour," said Harbhajan Singh (via NDTV).He added:"Shubman has a lot of time to grow into the role of ODI captain. I'm happy for Shubman; he's got this opportunity, but it could have been delayed a little. He could have waited six to eight months or even a year before taking over."Rohit boasts phenomenal batting numbers as captain in ODIs, averaging over 52 at a strike rate of 11.97 in 55 innings.#2 Kris SrikkanthFormer Indian captain Kris Srikkanth called it a sign of disrespect to Rohit Sharma if the latter was stripped of ODI captaincy without proper communication. Srikkanth also believes the move was predictable, considering Rohit's sudden retirement from the red-ball format earlier in the year."They should have told him beforehand in that case. But whether they have or not is unknown. They already prepared him for this by indirectly stripping him of captaincy and a spot in Tests. But it is unfair on Rohit Sharma in some ways even if they are building towards the 2027 ODI World Cup. Not fair, absolutely not fair," said Srikkanth on his YouTube channel.Srikkanth added:"He has done so much so he must be given the respect. And if he wanted to lead after the conversation, the first right of refusal should be given to him. Actually it's disrespectful. Unless Ajit Agarkar and the other selectors have spoken to him already. Then it's fair enough. Whether they have or not, we cannot judge."In his last ODI as captain, Rohit top-scored for India in the 2025 Champions Trophy final with a crucial 76 off 83 deliveries against New Zealand.#3 Mohammad KaifFormer Indian batter Mohammad Kaif blasted the management for their unwillingness to extend Rohit Sharma's ODI captaincy tenure, considering his incredible achievements. The 38-year-old took over as India's 50-over captain from Virat Kohli in December 2021.During his tenure, the Men in Blue routinely dominated teams in multi-national events and bilateral series."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. In India, there are examples of people stretching their time; Rohit Sharma did not do that. He made players, taught them, backed them, and mentored them to perform under pressure. But we could not give him one year," said Kaif on his X handle (via NDTV).The ICC events aside, Rohit also led India to glory in two Asia Cups in 2018 and 2023.#4 Sadagoppan RameshFormer Indian opener Sadagoppan Ramesh was irate at the side moving away from Rohit Sharma as their ODI captain. Ramesh believes Rohit's removal from captaincy was like dropping a player who had just scored a century or picked up a five-wicket haul."It was shocking to hear because he just brought us the cup home in the last ICC ODI tournament we played and you remove him in the very next series. I can see Shubman Gill is being fast-tracked but this is like dropping someone who scored a 100 or picked up a five-wicket haul in the very next game. Rohit Sharma should have at least captained this series definitely," said Ramesh on his YouTube channel.Rohit is among India's most accomplished ODI batters with 11,168 runs at an average of 48.76 and a strike rate of almost 93.#5 Subramaniam BadrinathFormer Indian batter Subramaniam Badrinath expressed surprise at Rohit Sharma's sudden removal as ODI captain, coming off his success at the 2025 Champions Trophy. That aside, Rohit also led India to the 2024 T20 World Cup title and has captained the Mumbai Indians (MI) to all five of their IPL titles."Rohit has just won the Champions Trophy as captain yet Shubman Gill has been appointed as ODI captain. This is surprising and makes one wonder if they are leaning towards the youngsters fully," said Badrinath on his Instagram handle.Despite being axed as captain, Rohit Sharma found a place in the Indian squad for the upcoming ODI series in Australia.