New Test era begins as India name Shubman Gill as Captain

Monday, 26 May 2025 01:44 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Shubman Gill

At a recent press conference, the Board of Control for Cricket in India announced Shubman Gill as the new Captain for the Test side.

The right-handed batter has featured in 32 Tests for the country, and has 1,893 runs at an average of 35.05, with five tons to his name.

Gill has previously captained India in the T20I format, having led the side in the five-game series in Zimbabwe in July 2024.

His first assignment as the full-time Test Captain will be on the tour of England. Following the retirements of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin, the Asian side will bear a new look for their five-Test tour starting 20 June – the series that will mark the beginning of the new ICC World Test Championship cycle.

India’s Selection Committee Chairman Ajit Agarkar discussed Gill’s appointment in the press conference.

“Over the last year or so, we’ve looked at Shubman at various times. You take a lot of feedback from the dressing room as well. He’s very young but we’ve seen the improvement. I know it is T20 cricket for GT [Gujarat Titans in IPL] as well, but you take feedback from a lot of people. We are hopeful that he’s the guy. It’s always going to be a high-pressure job, like it always is, but we are hopeful that we’ve picked the right guy. He’s a terrific player.”

Rishabh Pant has been named as Gill’s Vice-Captain.

Among notable absentees, pacer Mohammed Shami is not a part of the India setup.

Meanwhile, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, and Mohammed Siraj will be the senior faces supporting Gill. The squad also includes players who have been around the India setup over the past couple of years, including Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, and Akash Deep.

Returning to the India setup is Karun Nair, who enters the side on the back of a phenomenal run in domestic cricket. Nair last featured for the Men in Blue in 2017. The right-handed batter scored 863 runs for Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy, while also leading the State side to a title win over Kerala in the final.

Also in the squad is opener Sai Sudarshan, who has been in exceptional form at the domestic and the Indian Premier League (IPL).

All-rounder Shardul Thakur returns to the setup, while Arshdeep Singh gets a maiden call-up.

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