Shubman Gill emerges front runner to take up India’s Test captaincy after Rohit's retirement

Ace batter Shubman Gill leads the race to replace Rohit Sharma as Team India’s new Test captain. Tipped to play as Rohit’s deputy on India’s next international assignment – the away Test tour of England starting June 20 in Leeds, Gill will now succeed him as the new Test skipper after the veteran batter announced his shock Test retirement on Wednesday (May 7).

Picking Gill as Rohit’s right replacement comes on the back of discussions around Jasprit Bumrah’s unavailability throughout the next World Test Championship (WTC) cycle to manage his workload management. Bumrah was the Test vice-captain on India's previous away tour to Australia and even captained the team in two Tests – first and last, in Rohit’s absence.

Meanwhile, Rohit’s Test captaincy came under scrutiny after he lost two back-to-back Test series, first against New Zealand at home and then to Australia Down Under, conceding India’s chance of making it to their third straight WTC Final. 

Although Rohit missed the series opener against Australia (in Perth) for personal reasons, he sat out of the playing XI for the final Test at the SCG owing to a series of poor performances with the bat, hitting just 31 runs across five innings while batting at different positions.

Per the latest reports, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee will pick the squad for England Tests later this month.

Besides Gill, 25, the selection committee also has plenty of options in regulars like KL Rahul, gloveman Rishabh Pant and even Bumrah, and even though his chances are minute given his workload management, they might pick Gill, considering the long-term view in mind. 

Though Kohli also captained India briefly during the Sydney Test when Rohit and Bumrah were absent for different reasons, the selectors and the veteran batter are believed to be on the same page to pick someone else, someone new for the next WTC cycle.

Gill, hereby, emerges as the standout option. 

The right-handed batter has been a regular in the longer formats since his Test debut during the 2020 Melbourne Test. Already a superstar in his age category, having recently won the Under-19 World Cup (in 2018), Gill emerged as a top batter in the past five years, gaining prominence and a reputation as a reliable batter. 

Though he had never led India in Tests and ODIs, having only captained five times in international cricket, all during the away Zimbabwe T20Is mid-last year, Gill’s credentials as Gujarat Titans’ (GT) captain in IPL 2025 are helping his case. 

Under Gill’s captaincy, GT is leading the points table with eight wins in 11 contested matches, needing just one win from the remaining three league matches to confirm their playoff participation this season.