Saba Karim, the former Indian selector has cast doubt on the selection of veteran Rohit Sharma into the India team to play the three match ODI against Australia, which begins on October 19. The BCCI uncovered the 15 man roster and this time Rohit comes back to the team after his last appearance with the team when they won the champions trophy way back in 2025.
The opener has however been dispossessed of the captain duties and Shubman Gill has been chosen as the new captain. When Rohit left the team as captain, Karim raised questions as to why he was not part of the team, suggesting that he is not among the choices being considered by the selectors in the 2027 ODI world cup. He also mentioned the decision to be sudden and unjustified.
“If you haven’t made him the captain, then why are you still keeping him in the team? It clearly shows that you don’t see him as part of the future, that he won’t be there for the 2027 World Cup. In that case, you shouldn’t keep a player in the team whom you don’t see as part of your plans for 2027. Then whether he remains captain or not, or even a player or not, doesn’t really matter. That’s why I said the selectors have acted in great haste with Rohit Sharma, and there was no need for it,” Karim said on KADAK.
The veteran cricketer also mentioned that during the next home season, Gill may be India’s all-format captain, recognizing the 25-year-old’s ability for the post. Meanwhile, the Indian Test captain will return to action on Friday, October 10, leading India in the second Test of the two-match series against the West Indies at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium.
“You have elevated him and even made him the vice-captain in T20s. Now that you have made him captain, the thought is that very soon, maybe by the next season, we will see Shubman Gill leading in all three formats. Looking at it this way, their thinking seems correct. They feel that there is no other capable leader, and that’s why they are pushing Shubman at this time. He has also shown good captaincy, performing well in Test cricket. Now we will see how he does in ODIs, but yes, he has the capabilities to become a captain.”
Saba Karim
