Rohit Sharma’s sacking justified by Gautam Gambhir’s mate with ‘BGT horror show’ reminder

Published - 07 Oct 2025, 02:50 PM | Updated - 07 Oct 2025, 02:53 PM

Rohit Sharma Gautam Gambhir for India
Rohit Sharma Gautam Gambhir for India. Image Credits: X

Former teammate of the India National Cricket Team head coach Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, has backed the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee's decision to sack Rohit Sharma as the ODI skipper.

Robin Uthappa also issued a reminder about the things that panned out during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, which made life hard for the Indian team on the Australia tour.

He’s gonna be, in all honesty, 41 when that World Cup comes around. Right? - Robin Uthappa on Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma has been stripped of the ODI captaincy ahead of the Australia tour, which brings an end to his illustrious leadership career in international cricket.

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In 2024, he had himself relinquished captaincy by retiring from the T20I format post-T20 World Cup win, and he stepped down as Test captain and retired from the format ahead of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025.

His Test retirement came after India's loss in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 and a lot of drama surrounding it. Notably, Rohit Sharma skipped the Test series opener to stay with his family following the birth of his son, and upon his return, he displayed an awful batting performance.

In five innings, Rohit Sharma scored just 31 runs and opted out of the fifth Test in Sydney, handing back the captaincy to Jasprit Bumrah, who guided India to a win in 1st Test. However, India ended up losing the series 1-3.

Meanwhile, speaking on his YouTube channel, Robin Uthappa said that India would want to avoid the repeat of BGT; hence, handing leadership to Shubman Gill was the right call. He said:

“He’s gonna be, in all honesty, 41 when that World Cup comes around. Right? So, you gotta keep that in consideration as well. And for all intentional purposes, I think it’s done with taking the decision when the stakes are low rather than when the stakes are high, you don’t want another situation like what happened in Australia.

"To happen to Rohit Sharma, he’s too good a player for something to happen to him like that again. So, maybe to avoid all those stuffs. Maybe, I don’t know… You don’t want an uncomfortable situation like that, and if he keeps himself fit, then no questions there. You know Rohit and Virat will be a part of that side.”

They know how they get their runs and how they perform well - Robin Uthappa

Robin Uthappa further backed Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to continue their heroics in the 50-over cricket, but warned about their reflexes slowing down. He stated:

“Yeah, I think so. I think they’ve been doing well as well… So far, they’ve played exceptionally well. So, I think they’ll continue to do well… They know how they get their runs and how they perform well, and they’ll stick to their set templates that works for them, and I think they’ll continue to do that.

"I don’t see form kind of dipping that sense, but it’s just about reflexes and does that work, and how those things work because right now, they are not playing a lot of cricket as well. The only cricket they’ll find themselves playing is perhaps the IPL and One Day cricket, and perhaps maybe some domestic One Day matches if they do come by."

If he remains fit, then I think he’ll be a part of the next World Cup - Robin Uthappa

Predicting Rohit Sharma's ODI future, Robin Uthappa said that the modern-day batting great could only book a place in India's ODI squad for the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2027 if he works really hard on his body and maintains top-level fitness. He said:

“If he remains fit, then I think he’ll be a part of the next World Cup because, like I said at the start of the pod, I think their templates for success in ODI cricket is clear for them. They know what works for them… However, Rohit Sharma is someone who’s basically upped the ante even in One Day cricket, and I think in the last 3-4 years, he’s played in a much quicker nip, and I think that’s been a transformation of sorts from him.”

“Ideally, how he scored all of his runs in ODI cricket was his first fifty would take about 60-75 balls, and then the next fifty to much lesser, and then next fifty to much lesser… The shift in which he approaches One Day cricket has changed, and I think that he’s probably found a sweet spot at that,” he added.

Also Read: Dilip Vengsarkar indirectly orders Ajit Agarkar to drop Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma from ODIs

Sonanchal Gautam

Sonanchal Gautam is a dedicated sports journalist, content manager, writer, and editor with over 4 y... Read more

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