Shubman Gill has been appointed India’s new Test captain, with Rishabh Pant named his deputy, for the upcoming five-match Test series against England. The decision by the selectors was widely anticipated following the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
The squad also sees the maiden Test call-up for promising young left-hander B Sai Sudharsan. Veteran batsman Karun Nair makes a return to the national setup after a seven-year hiatus. Notably, pacer Mohammed Shami was excluded from the squad due to fitness concerns.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar expressed confidence in Gill’s leadership abilities, stating, “For the last year or so, we have been looking at Shubman for leadership. We are hopeful he is the guy who is going to take the team forward. It is a high-pressure job, but he is a terrific player. We wish him all the best.”
Regarding Mohammed Shami’s absence, Agarkar clarified, “His workload is not where it needs to be. We were hoping he would be available, but it is unfortunate. At the moment, he is not fully fit.” He also confirmed that Harshit Rana and Sarfaraz Khan, who were part of the touring squad for Australia, have been dropped.
India’s Test Squad for England Series:
Shubman Gill (Captain), Rishabh Pant (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, K L Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, and Kuldeep Yadav.
