The next Indian Test captain: Indian selectors have these options to consider

Jun 21, 2023

By: Sourabh Jain

Credit: BCCL

The World Test Championship loss

India recently lost the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia by 209 runs, in yet another instance of the Indian team failing to win an ICC trophy.

Credit: BCCL

Questions raised on captaincy

Former cricketers as well as fans have raised questions on Rohit Sharma’s captaincy in the final – including the decision to exclude Ravichandran Ashwin, the top-ranked test bowler in the world, from the playing XI.

Credit: BCCL

What next?

The Indian team will now head to West Indies for two tests, three one-day internationals (ODIs) and five T20s in July.

Credit: BCCL

Sharma may continue as test captain

While the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to announce the squad for the West Indies tour, reports claim that Sharma is likely to remain captain for the upcoming tests.

Credit: BCCI

Who could lead the Indian test side after Rohit Sharma?

Even if the BCCI does name Sharma as India’s test captain for the upcoming West Indies tour, the 36-year-old may not retain the captaincy until the next WTC. Here we look at some possible candidates who could take his place.

Credit: BCCL

Rishabh Pant

Considered the spiritual successor of MS Dhoni, Pant may lead the Indian side after he recovers from his accident and rejoins the team. The 25-year-old has played 33 test matches and scored five centuries and eleven fifties.

Credit: BCCL

Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah, who has been on the sidelines for nearly a year now due to an injury, may also get the call to lead the Indian test side. He has played 30 test matches so far and has taken 128 wickets.

Credit: BCCL

Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill, who has impressed everyone with his bat, is also in contention for the captaincy. He has played 16 test matches so far and has scored two centuries and four fifties.

Credit: BCCL

Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer is another batsman in contention for the captaincy of the Indian Test side. While he has just played 10 tests, he has scored one century and five fifties.

Credit: BCCL

Tendulkar, Ganguly, Gavaskar analyse team India’s WTC loss and road ahead