It'll Be A Shame If Rohit Sharma Doesn't Get India's White-Ball Captaincy: Gautam Gambhir

Former India batsman Gautam Gambhir has said that it is high time to handover India’s white-ball or specifically T20I captaincy to Rohit Sharma. His comments came after Rohit Sharma led Mumbai Indians to a record fifth IPL title on Tuesday. Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Capitals in the final to clinch the title.

Rohit Sharma led from the very front and played a captain’s knock of 68 runs as Mumbai Indians chased down a modest target of 157 with ease. The defending champions crossed the finishing line with eight balls to spare. Mumbai Indians also became the second team to retain their IPL title.

All the five titles for Mumbai Indians have come under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy. What makes the feat even more incredible is that those five titles have come in just eight years. Rohit Sharma took charge of the team in 2013 and led Mumbai to their first-ever title in his very first season as captain and has not looked back since then.

Gautam Gambhir calls for Rohit Sharma to take charge of India’s white-ball teams:

The latest triumph has further increased the call of giving India’s white-ball captaincy to Rohit. And Gautam Gambhir has joined the bandwagon too. The batting legend, who led Kolkata Knight Riders to two IPL titles, said that it is India’s loss if Rohit is not appointed as the captain of Men in Blue.

“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 titles,” Gautam Gambhir told ESPNcricinfo.

Gambhir further added that if the benchmark to become a captain is their record then Rohit has got it, having won five IPL titles as captain.

“We keep saying MS Dhoni is India’s most successful captain. Why? Because he has won two World Cups and three IPLs,” Gautam Gambhir said.

“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,” he added.

At present, Virat Kohli is India’s captain across formats. But according to Gambhir, India should opt for ‘split-captaincy’ and give Rohit a chance to lead India in the limited-overs cricket. He pointed out Rohit and Kohli’s record as captain in IPL to state that the former stands out as captain.

“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,” he said.

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