The BCCI selection committee on Saturday announced India’s squad for the upcoming white-ball series against Australia. Indian Test captain Shubman Gill replaced incumbent Rohit Sharma as the skipper for the upcoming ODI series against Australia. Shreyas Iyer will play as a vice-captain for the series. The series will see three ODIs and five T20Is India vs Australia games scheduled from October 19 to November 2.
The headline decision sees 26-year-old Gill appointed as India’s new ODI captain, succeeding Sharma. Under the four-year captaincy of ‘Hitman’, India won the 2025 Champions Trophy — their first major ICC title in over a decade.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, both senior stalwarts, are part of the ODI squad. It will be very interesting to watch Gill and Sharma open for the matches. Jasprit Bumrah is not part of the ODI squad for the Australia series. The ace pacer will however feature in the T20 games.
India ODI squad: Shubman Gill (c), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal
‘Tough call’ call for chief selector
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar said that replacing Rohit was “a tough call”. “Even if he hadn’t won, it would have been a difficult decision,” Agarkar said, adding, “But sometimes you have to look ahead…where the team stands, what’s in its best interest.”
Agarkar added that the infrequent nature of ODI cricket in today’s schedule made it necessary to give Gill a sustained period at the helm. The move was aimed at grooming the young opener to lead India’s next generation of one-day cricketers, he further said.
India’s T20 squad vs Australia
The 16-member Indian squad for the T20 series against Australia will be led by Suryakumar Yadav. The five-match series will be played across Canberra, Melbourne, Hobart, Gold Coast and Brisbane from October 29 to November 8.
Suryakumar, who continues to be India’s T20I mainstay, will be supported by Shubman Gill as vice-captain. The squad features a balanced mix of youth and experience, including all-rounders Shivam Dube and Axar Patel, wicketkeepers Jitesh Sharma and Sanju Samson and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma and Rinku Singh add depth to India’s batting lineup, while Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy and Washington Sundar will lead the spin attack.
India’s T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (VC), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar
Australia is yet to announce its squad for the home series.