India's ODI side will see the start of a new era as Shubman Gill has been handed over the baton for the 50-over side, replacing Rohit Sharma.
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The 26-year-old, who was initially given the responsibility to lead the red-ball side, will now take over the reins of the ODI side with India's upcoming series against Australia starting later this month.
Latest reports suggest that Rohit's removal as the ODI skipper is not just a decision about the future but has deeper, more complex implications.
Why was Rohit Sharma removed from India's ODI captaincy?
In a press conference to announce the squad, Ajit Agarkar, the Chairman of selectors, spoke on the decision to move on from Rohit, as he mentioned that the decision was taken in order to bring uniformity in leadership across formats.
Agarkar remarked that managing three different captains would not have been ideal for the side, and therefore, they came up with the decision.
However, according to the reports in the Times of India, the call to look beyond Rohit was taken as the management believed that had the senior statesman been at the helm, the team culture would have been affected.
It was believed that with Rohit, the management would have been forced to take a backseat, which wasn't really acceptable to the Gambhir-led coaching staff.
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It was also mentioned that the 38-year-old India skipper called shots while during the first six months of Gambhir's tenure as the head coach, but after the clean sweep against New Zealand at home, Gambhir took charge.
“A player of Rohit’s stature in a leadership role would have meant he would get to drive his philosophy in the dressing room. But with him playing only in ODIs, a format which is played the least, it could have disturbed the team culture,” said a BCCI source.
Rohit led India to two ICC titles in eight months, including the T20 World Cup and the ICC Champions Trophy. Under him, the Men in Blue unleashed a fresh and positive approach to taking on opponents before eventually developing into the best white-ball side in the world.
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