Is Rohit Sharma the ideal captain for India in limited-overs?

Rohit Sharma is the most successful captain in the Indian Premier League, having led Mumbai Indians to record five titles. He is also the most successful player in the tournament, having won six titles to date. However, he is not the full-time captain yet for Team India.

Team Newsable

Dubai - United Arab Emirates, First Published Nov 11, 2020, 5:30 PM IST

Rohit Sharma added another feather to his cap, as he has won the Indian Premier League (IPL) title once again with Mumbai Indians (MI). Being the captain of the side, he has led them to record five titles to date, while it has also made him the most successful captain in the tournament, as well as the format.

Rohit is also the most successful player in the competition, having won six titles to date. Although his captaincy is rewarded in the IPL, he is not the full-time captain for Team India, as of now.

Rohit continues to be skipper Virat Kohli's deputy for Team India, across formats. However, former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir feels that it's about time Rohit is made the Team India captain, for limited-overs at least, since he has been far more successful than Kohli.

"If Rohit Sharma doesn't become India's captain, it's their loss, not Rohit's. Yes, a captain is only as good as his team and I completely agree with that, but what are the parameters to judge a captain on who is good and who isn't? The parameters and benchmark should be the same. Rohit has led his team to five IPL titles," Gambhir was quoted as saying on ESPNcricinfo's show T20 Time Out.

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"We keep saying MS Dhoni is India's most successful captain. Why? Because he has won two World Cups and three IPLs. Rohit has won five IPL titles, he is the most successful captain in the history of the tournament. Going forward, it'll be a shame if he doesn't get India's white-ball or just T20 captaincy because he can't do much more than this. He can only help the team he captains to victories. So, if he doesn't become India's regular white-ball captain, it will be their loss," added Gambhir.

Gambhir had earlier slammed Kohli for his poor captaincy in the IPL, as he had failed to lead Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to a title-winning performance since 2013. Nonetheless, Gambhir feels that while Kohli is the ideal man to lead Team India in Tests, limited-overs is Rohit's territory to deal with.

"They can also consider split-captaincy. No one is poor. Rohit has shown in white-ball cricket how big the difference is between his and Virat's captaincy. One player had led his team to five titles, the other hasn't won yet. I'm not saying this because Kohli is a poor captain. But, he has received the same platform that Rohit has, so you have to judge both of them on the same parameters. Both have been captains in the IPL for the same length of time. I feel Rohit stands out as a leader," Gambhir concluded.

While Kohli is getting ready to lead Team India across formats in the upcoming tour of Australia, later this month, Rohit would be resting and healing himself before leaving for Australia, for the Tests. He has recently recovered from a hamstring strain and has been asked by the Board of control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to rest, as he would not be travelling Down Under with the initial squad that is to leave on Wednesday from Dubai.

Last Updated Nov 11, 2020, 5:30 PM IST

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Is Rohit Sharma the ideal captain for India in limited-overs?

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