Kohli, Rohit Tribute Hints at Exit – Who’s India’s Next Captain?
Cricket Australia has announced that it'll be honouring the Indian legends, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, in the upcoming ODI series scheduled later this year. Speculation of ODI retirement begins for both stars before the 2027 World Cup, with new captains being looked for by the Indian team.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are known as the iconic duo of the Indian cricket team, dominating across all three formats. However, after winning the T20 World Cup 2024, both players announced their retirement together from the T20I format. This was also followed by the Test retirement announced by both talented players in May 2025.
With the IPL 2025 also coming to an end, Rohit and Virat will be seen by the fans during the ODI series in Australia, which is scheduled to take place in the month of October. Cricket Australia recently announced that it will be honouring the two legendary batters of this era in the ODI series, which also comes up with some speculations about their ODI retirement.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have one dream, which is to win the 2027 World Cup together, and with such speculations, it seems that the Indian team will soon require a new captain for the white ball format. Although there are many players available in the Indian cricket team, there are only a few of them who could captain the team in the white ball format, and these captains will be discussed here.
Shreyas Iyer
Shreyas Iyer’s name comes out on top when speculations for a new captain take place around the internet. He has accomplished a lot as a captain and also as a player in the past few years, making him one of the best choices to lead the Indian team in the white ball format. His captaincy in the domestic format has been dominant, with Iyer helping Mumbai to win three domestic tournaments in a single cycle.
| Tournament | Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| IPL 2020 | Delhi Capitals | Runner-up |
| IPL 2024 | Kolkata Knight Riders | Champions |
| Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2024 | Mumbai | Champions |
| Ranji Trophy 2024 | Mumbai | Champions |
| Irani Cup 2024 | Mumbai | Champions |
| IPL 2025 | Punjab Kings | Runner-up |
Under his captaincy, Mumbai was able to win the iconic one-off Test match against the Rest of India, which helped them to break the jinx of the Irani Cup. The team was able to win after 27 years, and this was also the beginning of Captain Shreyas Iyer’s era. He also led Mumbai to win the SMAT 2024 title, and he himself scored 345 runs in 9 matches at an average of 49.28, with a century and a half-century.
Even in IPL 2024, Shreyas Iyer led Kolkata Knight Riders to win the title after 10 years. The team also secured the biggest margin victory in the IPL finals by defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad by 8 wickets in the ultimate clash. Iyer finished the season with 351 runs in 15 matches at an average of 39, including two half-centuries. Following that, he went on to continue his domination in the domestic formats.
Playing under Ajinkya Rahane in the Ranji Trophy 2024, Shreyas Iyer also lifted the trophy, as he scored 153 runs in 3 matches at an average of 38.25. With Punjab Kings announcing him as the new captain of the side, Shreyas was all set to continue his helm as the most dominant captain in the white ball format.
Shreyas Iyer led Punjab Kings to the playoffs of TATA IPL 2025, helping the team to reach its first since the 2014 season. Along with that, he also made his way to the finals against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, becoming the only IPL captain to lead three different IPL teams to the finals. He was also the top scorer for Punjab Kings this time, with 604 runs in 17 matches at an average of 50.33.
Shubman Gill
Once a legend said, “split captaincy doesn’t work in India,” which means that having dual captains for different formats won’t be suitable for the Indian cricket team at all. This iconic line was said by the Greatest captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, before he stepped down from captaincy, and Virat Kohli was appointed as the captain for all formats. Following this, it even took place when Virat Kohli resigned from all formats as a captain to appoint Rohit Sharma as the new captain for all formats.
With this being said, it should be noted that Shubman Gill has recently been announced as the captain of the Indian cricket team in the Test format. This surely makes him the right contender to lead the Indian cricket team in the white ball format and even the 2027 World Cup, if Rohit Sharma chooses to retire from the format before the tournament.
Shubman Gill has already led the Indian cricket team in the T20I format as an interim captain. He led India to win the series against Zimbabwe by 4-1, and also finished as the top run scorer for the team with 170 runs in 5 matches at an average of 42.50 runs per innings. This makes Shubman more set for the upcoming opportunities he is likely to get in the white ball format.
Besides that, Shubman Gill has also led Gujarat Titans in IPL since the 2024 season, as he was appointed the new captain of the team following the departure of Hardik Pandya. Although the 2024 season didn’t go as expected, Gill led his team to the Eliminator stage in IPL 2025, where he scored 650 runs in 15 matches at an average of 50, with 6 half-centuries, being the captain who leads from the front.
Shubman Gill has also been a star performer in the ODI format, holding the top spot in the ICC rankings with an average of 59.04 in 55 matches in the 50-over format. With the new coach Gautam Gambhir giving more opportunities to the youngsters, he’ll likely appoint Gill as the white ball captain of the team.
KL Rahul
KL Rahul is one such player who has compromised a lot for the Indian cricket team. He can bat at the opening spot, number 3, number 4, or even much down the order, depending on the situation of the game. Rahul has been the kind of player for the Indian cricket team who keeps the team’s victories ahead of his milestones. We also saw it in India’s first match against Australia in the 2023 World Cup, where Rahul finished off with a six, despite being in the 90s.
His contribution to the team has been significant in the ODI format, scoring 3043 runs in 85 matches at an average of 49.08, with 7 centuries and 18 half-centuries. Being a wicket keeper too, KL Rahul could help to give cricket fans a Deja Vu of MS Dhoni’s captaincy era, where a wicket keeper led the Indian team to win the World Cup.
In the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, KL Rahul became the hero of the team with his performances in the middle order. Throughout the tournament, he scored 140 runs and only got out once in four innings, maintaining a strike rate of 97.90 even in Dubai’s tough batting conditions.
He also got some experience in captaincy with the help of IPL, as he led Lucknow SuperGiants in three seasons from 2022 to 2024. Out of these three seasons, he even led the team to the playoffs two times, scoring more than 600 runs in the IPL 2022 edition, showcasing the example of a captain leading from the front.
If KL Rahul is appointed as the new captain of the Indian cricket team for the 2027 World Cup, it will be another chance for the legendary player to prove his worth to the team and come out on top. And everyone knows that KL Rahul surely got the best redemption arc in cricket history, as he went from the Villain of the 2023 World Cup loss to the Hero of the 2025 Champions Trophy win.
Among all these contenders, which one do you think is likely to lead the Indian team in the 2027 World Cup, if Rohit and Virat announce their retirement?
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