Shubman Gill leading race for Test captaincy

New Delhi, May 8: Young batter Shubman Gill has emerged as the top contender to take Rohit Sharma's position as Test captain following the 38-year-old's retirement from the long format, starting with the five-Test tour to England in June, reported ESPN Cricinfo.

Gill being named as Test captain looks inevitable, as it looks like Jasprit Bumrah, who led India in two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and picked up a record-breaking 32 wickets in five Tests, is likely to miss some Tests during the upcoming cycle for his workload management and preventing injuries, as per ESPNCricinfo.

The squad is expected to be picked during a meeting of the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel later this month, ahead of the first Test from June 20 at Headingley. With the series kicking off a fresh WTC cycle for years 2025-27, selectors want a captain who could be a long-term option, with Gill having age by his side, being 25 years old.

The question of Rohit's successor came up even before he announced his retirement from the format, as he was struggling with form over the last few months. His form deteriorated during the Test season 2024-25, scoring 164 runs in eight Tests and 15 innings spanning from the home Bangladesh series to the away Border-Gavaskar Trophy, with just one fifty. He also became the captain who lost India's first-ever Test series at home against NZ last year by 3-0 and was also captain for the majority of the Australia series, which India lost 3-1, which contributed to India's exit from WTC final contention.

Bumrah is the designated vice-captain and led the team in two Tests of BGT when Rohit was away during the first Test at Perth due to the birth of his child and in the final Test when the 'Hitman' opted out due to poor form.

But Bumrah's workload as an all-format leader of pace attack, coupled with his recent return to the game during the Indian Premier League (IPL) after a stress injury in his lower back, has concerned the selectors.

Of the players who were in the Sydney Test, the last Test of the BGT series, KL has led India in three Tests, winning two and losing one. Virat was the long-term captain, winning 40 of 68 matches, before Rohit took over the reins.

Gill has never led India in Tests and ODIs but has leadership experience in T20Is, wearing the armband for five T20Is against Zimbabwe away from home. He has also been India's vice-captain. He has also been leading Gujarat Titans (GT) in the IPL since 2024, when their title-winning skipper Hardik Pandya decided to have a homecoming to Mumbai Indians (MI). This season, GT is at the top, with eight wins and three losses, coming after a poor last season, when they were near the bottom of the points tally with just five wins in 14 games. Gill is also the designated vice-captain in both white-ball formats for India.

Since his debut in Tests during the 2020-21 BGT at Melbourne, Gill has been a Test regular, with 1,893 runs in 32 Tests at an average of 35.05, with five centuries and seven fifties in 59 innings and the best score of 128. His away form remains a concern despite recent form at home, scoring 716 runs in 15 Tests and 28 innings at an average of 27.53, with just a century and two fifties to his name.