NEW DELHI: Who will be India’s next Test captain? It’s a question that will keep buzzing in the BCCI corridors over the next few months, until the selectors huddle up sometime, maybe, in May to pick the team for the England tour in June. Until then, the debate could linger.
For many, the obvious choice is Jasprit Bumrah; but throw in the question of his workload management, and some of the ifs and buts start appearing. In Rohit Sharma‘s case, the jury is out, while the skipper himself seems to be on the edge of retirement. In fact, Timesofindia.com learned that he was ready to bow out after the fourth Test on the recently-concluded tour of Australia, but his “well-wishers” persuaded him to hang in for now.
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There have been discussions in corners about India moving on to its next-generation players as leaders, with Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill the two possible names. But their less-than-flattering show in Australia hasn’t done their chances any good.
Will the BCCI go back to Virat Kohli and ask him to look after the team and groom the next captain, possibly with Rohit still around as part of the leadership group? The answer to that is under lock and key at the moment.
Sharing his two cents on India’s Test captaincy issue, former England spinner Monty Panesar feels that performances in the Champions Trophy and the Indian Premier League (IPL) over the next 3-4 months will settle that debate.
The Champions Trophy runs from February 19 to March 9, with the IPL beginning a couple of weeks after, followed by the tour of England.
“Bumrah, I think, would want to lead in England because of the seaming conditions,” said Panesar, talking to Timesofindia.com from London.
Bumrah was named Player of the Series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for his 32 wickets, but he suffered a back injury during the fifth Test. It has also created uncertainty over his Champions Trophy participation.
“It just depends on the selectors and also speaking to Bumrah about ‘how did you feel about captaincy? Did it get the best out of you? Do you feel it’s the best for the team? Is the team listening?'” Panesar said.
“The question is, is Bumrah the best captain for India when it comes to making it into a winning side? Or do they just say, ‘maybe we need a batting captain?'”
The former left-arm spinner, who has his family roots in Punjab and played 50 Tests for England, said it’s difficult to look beyond Pant and Gill if it comes to picking a new captain — in case Rohit and Virat leave the scene or both remain available for the England tour but decide to stay away from captaincy.
Kohli stepped down as the Test captain in 2022, while Rohit ‘stepped away’ from the fifth Test in Australia, allowing Gill to take his place in the playing eleven.
Rohit scored a mere 31 runs in five innings of BGT. He has also lost five of his last six Tests as captain, drawing the one in Brisbane.
“When it comes to that (picking a young player as Test captain), you’re looking more towards Gill, really. But does he have the experience? Is he going to have a good IPL? And if he does show that for Gujarat Titans, you may just say, ‘hang on a minute, this is a good time to do it.’ But then overseas tours, you know, it’s a big risk,” Panesar viewed.
“You don’t see many teams having a fresh captain for an away tour. They always go for an experienced campaigner, and they may just think, ‘you know what, let’s just go with Bumrah or Rohit…let’s not put the pressure of captaincy on Pant or Gill because they still need to show that they can do well throughout a whole series, not in patches.”
Rohit is expected to lead India in the Champions Trophy. In fact, the former secretary of the BCCI, Jay Shah, had announced long before that Rohit will lead India in the tournament. However, things have changed since, as his bat has gone silent in red-ball cricket, putting him under self-doubt.
India are reported to have sought an extension from the International Cricket Council (ICC) for announcing their Champions Trophy squad. The deadline for that was January 12. It has further raised doubts over the situation with Rohit and the team’s captain in the prestigious ODI tournament, which is making a return to the ICC calendar.
“Let’s say if India win the Champions Trophy (with Rohit as captain), then I just think India will lean towards (sticking with) Rohit as the captain,” said Panesar.
But that’s if Rohit wants to continue his international career.
To conclude his views, Panesar said winning can change a lot of things.
“It’s about winning. India needs to get back to winning ways. When you’re winning, then it’s a lot easier to make decisions. When you’re losing, then what you have to do is have a fresh start. You have to bring in, maybe, new players or get the experienced players to groom the next young captain coming through. I think India needs to get back to winning ways, and the sooner they do, it would take a lot of pressure off a lot of other issues.”
