India has appointed Shubman Gill as their new Test captain, opting for the young top-order batter over experienced pacer Jasprit Bumrah for the five-match Test series against England, starting June 20. The leadership change follows the retirement of Rohit Sharma from Test cricket, with Virat Kohli also stepping away from the format earlier this month.
Despite being Rohit’s deputy and briefly leading the team in Australia, Bumrah was overlooked due to concerns about his workload. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar explained that while Bumrah is a key player, the team wanted to avoid overburdening him with captaincy responsibilities, which could affect his performance and fitness. Bumrah agreed with the decision after discussions with team management.
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Gill, 25, who has been captaining Gujarat Titans in the IPL, now takes charge of the Test side as India begins a new World Test Championship cycle. Agarkar expressed confidence in Gill’s leadership potential and said the added responsibility could help him grow as a cricketer. He acknowledged that leading the national team is a tougher challenge than franchise cricket but believes Gill’s multi-format experience will support him in the role.
Bumrah, due to workload management, is unlikely to feature in all five Tests, while senior seamer Mohammed Shami has been ruled out because of a recent injury. Wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant has been named as Gill’s deputy, and Kuldeep Yadav is the only specialist spinner included in the squad.
The selection also opens doors for young batters like Sai Sudharsan, who could make his Test debut, and Karun Nair, who may play his first Test since 2017.
India Test Squad:
Shubman Gill (captain), Rishabh Pant (vice-captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.
