Former England captain Michael Vaughan opined that Virat Kohli must succeed Rohit Sharma when he steps down as India Test captain, with Shubman Gill as the vice-captain for the series. Vaughan wrote on X, formerly called Twitter, “If I was India, I would give the captaincy to Virat for the Test series in England. Shubman Gill can be his VC for the tour.”
Indian selectors should meet soon for the consideration of the team for England, and the announcement should be by the end of the third week of May. India A shall be named early next week. It seems that Kohli has ventured to tell that he wants out of Test cricket, which has surprised many fans around. The selection committee had indeed considered appointing Kohli as captain for the England series to allow Gill extra time to prepare.
No official word has come from Kohli at this stage about his plans to hang up his boots in Test cricket, but one would suspect that he will be asked to feature in the five-Test series in England, particularly since Rohit has openly declared his retirement. The BCCI has not revealed any information about their discussions with Kohli concerning his future in Test cricket.
Gill seemed likely to lead the national team in Test matches. Rishabh Pant seems like the answer to it, with Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness still in question. Kohli began his Test career in 2011 and has been playing ever since. He has scored 9,230 runs in 123 Test matches at an average of 46.85 and has captained India in 68 Test matches, making him the most successful Test captain in the history of the nation. He is a very intense captain with strong leadership, which helped transform India into one of the best Test teams in the world, both at home and on foreign soil.
