Jasprit Bumrah thrown out of captaincy race by BCCI; new player included with Shubman Gill

The race to succeed Rohit Sharma as India’s next Test captain is heating up ahead of the highly anticipated England tour, but the decision is far from settled, with a few names like Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul making rounds across social media.

Now, a Sky Sports News report claimed that the Indian selectors have had informal discussions with Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant regarding the Test captaincy, but they have not yet made a decision despite the squad for the England tour being set to be announced this week.

BCCI yet to finalize India's next Test captain, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant in contention

The report suggested that the national selectors have shortlisted Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant for the Test captaincy. However, Jasprit Bumrah has reportedly opted out of contention, citing workload concerns over a demanding five-match Test series in England.

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While both contenders have been approached, sources revealed that the selection panel remains undecided on who will succeed Rohit Sharma as India’s Test captain. One senior selector has expressed doubts over Gill’s consistency and place in the XI, suggesting the Gujarat Titans captain may be more suited for the vice-captain's role, at least for some time now.

It is being said that the BCCI will announce the new Test captain and squad for the upcoming Test series in England later this week.

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India likely to rest Jasprit Bumrah for a couple of matches on England tour

Notably, Rishabh Pant, who is currently leading Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2025, has led India in 5 Tests, winning two, losing two, and one match had no result.

On the other hand, Jasprit Bumrah was India’s star performer in the 2024-25 Test series against Australia, playing all five matches and even leading India to their only win of the tour.

However, the star pacer suffered a back injury due to the heavy workload, which kept him out of the action for months. To manage his fitness, India may rest him for some matches on the upcoming England tour.

Rohit Sharma opted to retire after selectors denied mid-England series farewell

Meanwhile, Sky Sports News also reported that Rohit Sharma had plans to play part of the upcoming Test series against England and retire midway, just like MS Dhoni did during the 2014 series in Australia. But the selectors wanted a captain to lead the team throughout the five-match Test series.

The Indian selectors reportedly told Rohit he could still be part of the squad, but not as captain due to his decision to retire from Test cricket mid-series, and Hitman didn’t agree to that and opted to retire from the format instead of playing only as a batter.

Soon after Rohit’s retirement, Virat Kohli also announced his retirement from the longest format of the game. Now, the Indian selectors are looking to fill those two big gaps in the line-up alongside searching for an ideal captain who can lead the team throughout the new WTC cycle.

England vs India Test series schedule

Notably, the five-match Test series between England and India is all set to kick off on June 20 at Headingley in Leeds. The action then moves to Birmingham for the second Test from July 2 to 6, followed by the third Test match at Lord’s from July 10 to 14.

After a short break, the fourth Test will be played at Old Trafford, Manchester, from July 23 to 27. The fifth and final Test will be held at The Oval in London from July 31 to August 4.

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