Mohammad Kaif opens up on Rohit Sharma’s chances of playing 2027 World Cup

Former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif has shed light on Rohit Sharma’s chances of playing the 2027 World Cup. On Saturday, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel decided to hand over the ODI captaincy baton to Shubman Gill, removing Rohit Sharma from the leadership role.

Kaif reckons it would be difficult for Rohit to play solely as an opener as he had been doing a fantastic job as a leader. Rohit led India to T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy’s success as a skipper. 

Rohit had a successful record as ODI captain, leading India in 56 ODIs, out of which the team won 42 matches, lost 12, tied one, and had one no-result. 

Mohammad Kaif said on his YouTube Channel, “Now it will be match by match, series by series. The field is equal for everyone. Now, who knows how much he will even want to play? Once a player has tasted captaincy, once a player has had the experience of lifting two shining trophies in eight months, and develops a passion for it, he will not be able to focus only as an opener. His heart will not be in it. He has become a leader, a leader who manages the team, picks the team, uses players wisely like an elder brother, and makes tactical moves to change the game.”

On the other hand, Kaif said Shubman Gill is still a work-in-progress as a leader and he would have gotten better under Rohit’s tutelage. Gill has thus far led in only six List A games.

“It will be a loss for Gill. If Gill had spent another six months with Rohit Sharma, he would have learned the nuances of captaincy because you also groom a captain. Just recently, Shubman Gill was captain in the IPL during the league phase, and they were at the top. But as soon as the pressure came, they lost the last three matches.”

“They lost in the eliminator as well. The bottom team from Lucknow beat Gujarat in the later matches. Mumbai, which was playing so well on and off, defeated Gujarat in the eliminator. I am seeing that even now, Gill is not the finished product. He is still learning many things, as we saw in the IPL. So I feel he has not yet become a mature captain,” he added.

Gill will lead India in the three-match ODI series against Australia.