Rohit Sharma Replaces Virat Kohli as Team India's New ODI Captain!

Read Time:2 Minute, 27 Second

Virat Kohli was on Wednesday removed as India’s ODI captain with the national selection committee making Rohit Sharma the sole white-ball leader of the team till the 2023 50-over World Cup.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced that Rohit Sharma will be the permanent captain of India’s ODI and T20I teams. Rohit, who was named T20I captain after Virat Kohli stepped down from the role in the shortest format will now also lead the team in both white-ball formats.

Kohli, who took over T20I captaincy in 2017, had announced his decision to step down in September, citing his “immense workload”. He remains the skipper of the one-day and Test teams.

The announcement follows news that former batting legend Rahul Dravid was replacing Ravi Shastri as coach for all formats following the World Cup, where India failed to qualify for the semi-finals.

The right-handed Sharma, known for his hard hitting, made his debut in 2007 for the national team, initially playing limited overs cricket before being included in the Test team in 2013.

Sharma also captained the Mumbai Indians to victory in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 5 times. Royal Challengers Bangalore, led by Kohli, have never won the title.

Rohit was named as the vice-captain of the Test team as the BCCI senior selection committee announced an 18-member squad for th 3-Test series, starting December 26 in South Africa. Rohit replaced Ajinkya Rahane who has been struggling with a continued lean patch in the longest format of the game.

Meanwhile, he has also replaced Ajinkya Rahane as the vice-captain of the Test team. Kohli will continue to lead the team in the longest format but Rohit will be his new deputy from the upcoming tour to South Africa.

Rohit lead the team as permanent captain for the first time in T20I cricket last month in a three-match T20I series at home against New Zealand. India won the series 3-0 with Rohit winning the Man of the Series award due to his performance with the bat.

Rohit’s first assignment as ODI captain will come against South Africa, where the Men in Blue are scheduled to play three ODIs next month. BCCI is yet to announce India’s squad for the ODI series.

Virat Kohli had taken charge of the ODI team after MS Dhoni stepped down from the role in 2017. He had an impeccable record as captain in the 50-over format with 65 wins in 95 games. In Kohli’s leadership, India reached the final of the 2017 Champions Trophy and the semi-final of the 2019 Cricket World Cup.

Before the start of the 2021 T20 World Cup, Kohli had announced he will be stepping down as T20I captain after the event. The issue of ODI captaincy remained in the air as Kohli had only announced that he will leave the T20I captaincy.