India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir thinks it would be better to have one captain for all three formats, but he also knows that’s pretty tough in today’s cricket. With Rohit Sharma retiring from Tests, the BCCI is set to name a new Test captain soon, just in time for the series against England starting June 20. Right now, Suryakumar Yadav leads in T20Is, while Rohit will still be the captain for ODIs. Since both Rohit and Virat Kohli are out of Test and T20Is, Gambhir might have more say in who gets picked, and it’s likely that India will end up with different captains for each format.

Gambhir mentioned that having one captain would make planning and strategy simpler, but it’s hard to expect someone to lead in all formats year-round, especially with the IPL in the mix. It’s tough to have a captain for 12 months. You’ve got international cricket for 10 months followed by the IPL,” Gambhir said in a talk with CNN News 18.

He also pointed out that being an all-format captain can really weigh down a young player’s mental health. Putting a young guy in charge for a whole year adds a lot of pressure on him, he explained. It’s better to have two captains to share that load, so a player can feel more relaxed when he’s not leading.

Even though Kohli and Rohit have stepped away from Tests and T20s, they’ll still be around for ODIs. When asked about their chances for the 2027 ODI World Cup, Gambhir said, It’s a long way off. We have the T20 World Cup to think about first, which is happening in India next February-March. He added, So right now, the focus is on the T20 World Cup, and 2027 is still two-and-a-half years away. I’ve always said, if you’re performing, age doesn’t matter.