Amid the ongoing debates over Rohit Sharma replacing Virat Kohli as the Indian ODI captain, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Sourav Ganguli has finally broke his silence.
Mr Ganguly said it was selectors’ decision to make Rohit Sharma as the captain of ODI as it was felt that having two different captains for two different formats of white-ball cricket would not be ideal for the Indian team.
He said the Indian cricket board had even requested Virat Kohli not to step down as the T20 captain but he was did not want to continue the T20 captaincy after the World Cup in UAE.
“We had requested Virat not to step down as T20I captain but he didn’t want to continue as captain. So, the selectors felt that they cannot have two white-ball captains in two white-ball formats. That’s too much of leadership,” the former Indian captain told media.
The BCCI president said, having two captains in the limited-over formats would have led to confusion and that’s why a selection committee led by Chetan Sharama appointed Rohit Sharma as the “captain of the ODI and T20I teams going forward”.
“We did consider that (Kohli’s outstanding record as ODI captain) but if you look at Rohit’s record in whatever ODIs he has captained for India, it’s very good. Bottom line, there can’t be two white-ball captains,” said the chief of Indian cricket board.
Mr Ganguly did not predicted how Rohit will turn as the captain of both the formats but hw however, wished him for his job.
“It’s very difficult to predict. I wish him all the best and I hope he does a good job,” Ganguly said.
He even revealed that the chief selector Chetan Sharma and he himself had consulted with Kohli before announcing their decision on December 8.
“I can’t explain more about what all was discussed and what selectors have said, but this is the primary reason for having Rohit as the white-ball captain and Virat accepted it,” he said.
