BCCI's Rejection of 'MS Dhoni-Style Plan' Prompted Rohit Sharma's Retirement

Key Highlights

• Rohit Sharma planned mid-series Test retirement in England; BCCI denied request, leading to early exit.
• BCCI eyes Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant as Rohit Sharma’s Test captaincy successors; squad announcement expected by May 23.
• Sunil Gavaskar backs IPL as ideal captaincy training ground amid rising leadership roles for Gill, Pant, and Iyer.

According to reports, Rohit Sharma wanted to travel to England for the five-Test series and retire in the middle, as Dhoni did during his 2014 tour of Australia. However, the BCCI rejected the offer, which reportedly prompted the decision to retire before the series. "The selectors wanted consistency throughout the series and offered Sharma the opportunity to participate, but not as captain. "He decided to retire instead," the report stated. Rohit stunned everyone with his decision to retire from Test cricket, and Kohli followed suit only a few days later. As a result, the BCCI selectors face a difficult task in filling the void left by the retirement of modern cricket's two stalwarts.

According to the report, the BCCI selection committee had 'informal talks' with Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant about becoming Rohit's successor as Test captain.

The selection committee is expected to announce the squad for the England series around May 23, and while there have been numerous media reports indicating that Bumrah and Gill are leading the captaincy race, nothing official has been confirmed until now.

"One selector at the BCCI has reservations about giving Gill the captaincy because his place on the team is not guaranteed, and suggested he would be better suited to the vice-captaincy role," the report stated.

Meanwhile, Sunil Gavaskar believes the high-octane IPL is an ideal training ground for future India captains, giving players like Shubman Gill the necessary leadership experience before graduating to the highest level.

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"Although Pant is behind the stumps, he is also heavily involved. Iyer has also been superb. All three have been very positive in their captaincy."

"As a captain, nothing prepares you more than the pressure of a T20 game. "It is the best training ground for captaincy," said the former Indian captain.