The qualities of Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, and Shreyas Iyer as captains were emphasised by the great Sunil Gavaskar. Following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from the game’s longest format on May 7, India is prepared to name a new Test skipper in the days ahead.
Shubman is reportedly the front-runner to assume the esteemed position. But because of his greater experience and some standout batting performances in Test cricket, Pant is also a contender. Shreyas, meanwhile, is expected to rejoin the team for the forthcoming five-Test tour of England. He last participated in a Test match for India in February 2024.
All three of the aforementioned candidates have excellent leadership skills, according to former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, but he believes Gill is dominating the competition to be India’s next Test captain.
“To develop future leaders to the calibre of our super captains (MS Dhoni, Rohit, and Virat), it would take a few years. According to Gavaskar on Star Sports Press Room, each of them brought a unique style to the role of captain.
“You see a combination of Dhoni, Rohit, and Virat when you look at Gill, Iyer, and Pant, the three primary contenders for the Indian captaincy. Gill is presumably more competitive since he asks the umpire for a ruling as soon as it is made. “He is most likely much more involved,” Gavaskar remarked.
“Pant is heavily involved even if he is behind the stumps. Iyer has also been excellent. Through their captaining, all three have contributed a great deal of positive,” he continued.
Shubman previously captained India in five Twenty20 Internationals. Last year in Harare, he captained a youthful Indian squad that overcame Zimbabwe 4-1. Jasprit Bumrah, a seasoned fast bowler, was also a contender to captain India in red-ball cricket, but he reportedly chose to withdraw because of workload management issues.
With the highly anticipated series against England, India will kick off their World Test Championship (WTC) 2025–2027 cycle. Leeds will host the first Test match on June 20.
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