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BGT: Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah front-runners for vice-captaincy role with Rohit likely to miss Perth Test

BGT: Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah front-runners for vice-captaincy role with Rohit likely to miss Perth Test

BGT: Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah front-runners for vice-captaincy role with Rohit likely to miss Perth Test

The selectors of the Indian men’s national team will have a good headache in the coming days after reports emerged of Rohit Sharma’s unavailability for the first Test in Perth against Australia next month. With India set to take on Australia in a five-match Test series in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the selector’s panel led by Ajit Agarkar will now have to decide on who will succeed Rohit with long-term commitments also in sight.

Gill, Bumrah to lead in India?

After reports emerged of Rohit’s unavailability for the Perth Test, the attention has turned to who could succeed the veteran as skipper. Currently, the Indian team has no designated vice-captain but with Rohit unlikely to be available, the attention is now switched to the captaincy role. Bumrah is slightly ahead of Gill considering he has led the Indian team in the past.

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The veteran fast bowler led India in the one-off Test match against England at Edgbaston in 2022 while Rohit was out with COVID-19. He also led India in the T20I series against Ireland in 2023 before the ODI World Cup.

Gill’s claims for the captaincy role are strengthened by his ability to lead Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He also led the India team during the Zimbabwe tour in July while taking charge of the side in the Irani Cup.

The selectors will have the final say on the situation as India get ready for the high-voltage series Down Under.

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The Indian team has been victorious in the last two visits to Australia and also won the Boxing Day Test in 2020. Rohit Sharma’s men will look to repeat the heroics as they look to take a giant step towards the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s.

Border-Gavaskar Trophy (India tour of Australia) Schedule

1st Test: 22nd November to 26th November, Perth

2nd Test: 6th December to 10th December, Adelaide

3rd Test: 14th December to 18th December, Brisbane

4th Test: 26th December to 30th December, Melbourne

5th Test: 3rd January to 7th January, Sydney

About the Author

Aditya Vidyadhar Pimpale

Parth Seth is a research fellow at India Foundation, a New Delhi-based think tank, where he studies the themes of development, foreign policy, and multilateralism, particularly in ...Read More