"They will not go back to Rohit Sharma" - Mohammad Kaif picks Shubman Gill's replacement as captain in IND vs SA 2025 ODIs

Former cricketer Mohammad Kaif picked Shubman Gill's replacement as captain for the upcoming home ODI series against South Africa. Gill suffered a neck injury in the first innings of the first Test against South Africa in Kolkata.

He did not take part in the remainder of the game and was taken to the Woodlands Multispeciality Hospital. While he has been discharged, he is likely to miss the second Test. Moreover, Gill may miss the upcoming ODI series as well.

In such a scenario, Mohammad Kaif reckoned that India could name KL Rahul as captain for the series. He felt that they would not go back to former skipper Rohit Sharma. Notably, vice-captain Shreyas Iyer is also out due to injury and remains uncertain to feature in the ODIs against the Proteas.

"They will not go back to Rohit Sharma. That is done. He will deny it himself. I feel KL Rahul is an option. He has captained before and has experience as well. I feel he will lead the side in the ODI series," he said on his YouTube channel.

India are set to host South Africa for a three-match ODI series. The first match will be played on Sunday, November 30, in Ranchi. Raipur will host the second game on Wednesday, December 3, while the final ODI will be played at Visakhapatnam on Sunday, December 6.

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Mohammad Kaif backs left-hander to return in Gill's absence for the second Test

With Shubman Gill unlikely to join the side for the second Test, Mohammad Kaif backed young left-hander Sai Sudharsan to return to the team. Sudharsan played the last Test of the series against the West Indies but was dropped for the opening game against South Africa.

The left-hander scored 126 runs in the Delhi Test across both innings. However, he batted at number three. Notably, Washington Sundar batted at three in the first game against South Africa. Mohammad Kaif reckoned that Sudharsan should get his original position with Sundar going down the order.

Reflecting on the move to promote Sundar to number three, Kaif stated that it was because there were too many left-handers down the order with the likes of Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, and Axar Patel. However, he backed the theory of playing specialist batters for each position.

"There were many left-handers together down the order which is also why Sundar was sent up. To break that, he went up. This Indian team likes all-rounders and batting depth a lot. Even left-handers are favored a lot in this team. But I feel specialist batters should play on these tracks and they have a better chance to do well as they have an understanding. I feel there will be a turning track itself in Guwahati as well because the pitch would have been prepared already. But play on such pitches where our batters can score. We have bowlers who can pick wickets in all conditions," he said.

Mohammad Kaif thus highlighted that the team had no fixed plans, with batters changing positions and changes being made in the playing 11 as well. He stated that there were doubts that the team must resolve.