Hope Gill carries forward legacy of Virat, Rohit in ODIs: Harbhajan Singh

New Delhi [India], October 5 (ANI): Former off-spinner Harbhajan Singh is hopeful that the newly appointed India's ODI captain, Shubman Gill, will carry forward the legacy of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and other captains who served before him in the format.

On Saturday afternoon, Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar revealed that he had personally conveyed to Rohit Sharma about the management's decision to move on from him and pass the captaincy mantle to Gill. The 26-year-old's captaincy stint in the ODIs will begin in Australia with a three-match series, scheduled to kick off on October 19 at the Optus Stadium in Perth.

Gill has officially assumed the captaincy duties of two formats. After Rohit's expected retirement from Tests before the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England, the 26-year-old assumed the role and led the tourists from the front. With a record-breaking run in England, Gill was the highest run getter with 754 runs and remained fundamental in India, concluding the five-match affair on 2-2.

Ahead of his maiden assignment in Australia, Harbhajan hopes Gill will live up to the massive expectations associated with him and extend the legacy of the title that is now his, just like he did in the Test format.

"Many congratulations to Shubman Gill. He is from Punjab, and for me, it is really a proud moment. A player from Punjab has become the Test and ODI captain of the Indian team. I hope that the way he has handled the legacy in Test cricket, he carries forward the legacy of Virat, Rohit and other captains before him in the ODIs. There are a lot of expectations from Gill. I hope that he performs well in Australia, Harbhajan said in a self-made video.

With India expected to play around 20 ODIs during the buildup to the marquee event, Gill has set his goals, which culminate in lifting the coveted trophy in South Africa.

"It is the biggest honour to be able to lead your country in the One Day and to be able to lead a side that has done well. It's an immense pride for me. I hope I will be able to do great. I think we have about 20 ODIs before we play the World Cup, and obviously the ultimate goal is the World Cup in South Africa," Gill said in a video posted by the BCCI.

"So everything that we play, all the players that we play, we are going to try our best to be able to have a great season before we get to the World Cup, and hopefully we will be fully ready when we go to South Africa and win that World Cup," he concluded. (ANI)

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