Shubman Gill sends BIG message to Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli ahead of Australia tour, says ‘just want them to…’

India’s newly crowned ODI captain Shubman Gill wants greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to “work their magic” and bring their experience “to the table” in the upcoming three ODIs in Australia.

India’s unbeaten run in the Champions Trophy ended on a fairytale note as Rohit was adjudged the Player of the Match for his magnificent 76(83), which was the batting wizards’ last appearance. Rohit and Virat were expected to return to the Test division, but both of them decided to bid farewell to the format with more than a month to go before the England tour.

Considering that the experienced duo retired from T20Is last year, they have turned into single-format players. On Sunday, Virat and Rohit will return to enthrall the crowds for the first time after lifting the Champions Trophy final against Australia in Perth.

While Rohit is returning to the format, he will feature solely as a batsman. During the announcement, chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed that he had personally informed Rohit about the selectors’ decision to part with him. Despite the change in leadership, Gill has a simple message for veterans in the twilight phase of their careers.

“They have been playing for India for the last 10-15 years and winning matches for us. The experience they bring to the table is something that every captain or every team wants. And we are looking forward to that. We just want them to go out there and do their magic,” Gill said on Amul Cricket Live after India’s seven-wicket win against the West Indies in the 2nd Test. After India’s seven-wicket win against the West Indies.

Australia ruined India’s dream moment in the 2023 ODI World Cup final in Ahmedabad and since then the two sides are yet to meet in the format. With Australia missing captain Pat Cummins and several other key players, Gill assured they will continue playing the brand of cricket they have established over the last three years.

“We’ve been playing some of the best ODI cricket in the last two or three years and nothing changes for us. It’s more or less the same team we play for. So I’m very excited to go out there and play in Australia,” he added.

India’s ODI squad for Australia: Shubman Gill (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from ANI)