New Delhi, Oct 4 (IANS) Former India international Atul Wassan has welcomed the move by the senior national selection committee to appoint Shubman Gill as captain of the ODI team for the upcoming tour of Australia, saying the move symbolises passing of the baton in the team.

The national selection committee has carried out a major restructuring ahead of India’s upcoming Australia tour, appointing Shubman Gill as the new ODI captain, replacing Rohit Sharma. Shreyas Iyer, meanwhile, will be his deputy for the three-match ODI series.

The squad features the return of veterans Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, while Jasprit Bumrah has been rested from the ODIs, and Yashasvi Jaiswal has made a comeback.

The selectors on Saturday picked Test skipper Gill as the captain ahead of Rohit Sharma, who had led India to the final of the 2023 World Cup at home with an unbeaten run into the final. Rohit and his predecessor Virat Kohli have been included in the squad for the tour, even though some fans have not liked the idea of the team having three captains.

But Wassan welcomed the move wholeheartedly and said it is a move for the future. “I think this is a very wise decision. He is a player who plays all three formats and is performing very well,” Wassan said in an interview with IANS.

“Mujhe lagta hai yeh bahut samajhdari ka kam hai, kyunki yeh maturity batata hai,” said Wassan. The 57-year-old former cricketer and present commentator said the decision shows the maturity of the selection panel.

He said things can’t be decided on past accolades alone. “Rohit and Virat have played their innings and have done great things for the country. But I feel it is now time for new guns to take charge,” Wassan said in an interview.

“This is like passing the baton. Here’s a player who has been doing well in all three formats, and he needs to be rewarded. The two seniors — Rohit and Virat — are quite mature players, and I feel that they will also prefer that at this stage of their career, they should get the choice to play freely, without any pressure. They have achieved everything the game has to offer, and their playing under his captaincy will also give Shubman Gill a lot of confidence,” said Wassan, who has played four Tests and nine ODIs for India..

–IANS

bsk/