Indian cricket embarks on a new era. Shubman Gill replaced Rohit Sharma as the captain of India's ODI team on October 4 (Saturday). Shubman Gill’s first assignment will be the Australian tour starting October 19, where he will lead the Indian team in a three-match ODI series.
Rohit Sharma had previously retired from T20 International and Test cricket, leaving him available only for the ODI format. His ODI captaincy record is remarkable, gifting Indian cricket many memorable moments. Under Rohit's leadership, India clinched the Champions Trophy 2025 and won the Asia Cup in both 2018 and 2023. Additionally, the team reached the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Rohit Sharma ranks among India’s most successful ODI captains based on statistics. With Rohit at the helm, the Indian team won 42 out of 56 ODI matches, with one match ending in a tie and another with no result, resulting in a winning percentage of 75. Among players who have captained at least 50 ODIs, only Clive Lloyd (76.2%) has a better record. Rohit's achievements significantly surpass those of Virat Kohli (68.4%) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (55%).
Outstanding Performance in Multinational Tournaments
Under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy, India excelled in multinational tournaments (featuring 5-plus teams), winning 24 out of 27 matches, with only 2 losses, achieving a win rate of 88.8%, the best among 27 captains who have led in 20 or more ODIs in such tournaments.
Rohit Sharma stands as the second player to average over 50 and strike at over 100 as an ODI captain, a feat previously accomplished by AB de Villiers. De Villiers averaged 63.94 and struck at 110.48, while Rohit scored with an average of 52.20 and a strike rate of 111.97.
Rohit's gameplay flourished further during his ODI captaincy. As a player, his ODI strike rate was 88.42, but as a captain, it shot up to 111.97. Only Brendon McCullum saw a greater increase in striking ability while captaining.
In the 2023 ODI World Cup, Rohit Sharma amassed 597 runs — the second-highest runs ever by a captain in a single ODI tournament, second only to Greg Chappell's 686 runs during the 1980-81 Benson & Hedges Tri-Series in Australia.
A Member of Virender Sehwag's Exclusive Club
In multinational ODI tournaments (5-plus teams), Rohit scored 1288 runs, ranking as the sixth-highest in such events. In 2023, he scored 1255 runs at a strike rate of 117.07, the most by any Indian captain in a calendar year. As captain, Rohit is the second player to score a double century (208*) in ODI Internationals, following Virender Sehwag (219).
Under Rohit’s leadership, India won 10 consecutive matches in the 2023 ODI World Cup. Only Ricky Ponting and MS Dhoni have better records, with Ponting leading Australia to an unbroken streak of 24 World Cup matches, and Dhoni ranking second with 11.
Rohit Sharma is also the most successful captain in the ODI format of the Asia Cup, with India winning 9 out of 11 matches during his tenure. While MS Dhoni and Arjuna Ranatunga led teams to the same number of victories, they captained more matches compared to Rohit, with Dhoni overseeing 14 and Ranatunga 13 matches.
