Shubman Gill appointed India Test captain, Jasprit Bumrah overlooked

Published - 24 May 2025, 13:35 IST | Updated - 24 May 2025, 13:44 IST

Star cricketer Shubman Gill has been appointed as the full-time captain for the Indian Men’s cricket team in the Test format. The announcement came shortly after the retirement of Rohit Sharma, who hung his boots from the format on May 7. It is noteworthy to mention that pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah was the vice-captain and had even led the team in Rohit’s absence from the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, the last Test series which India played.

Gill, who has already led the side in T20Is, will start his stint as the red-ball captain with the five-match series against England. Notably, India’s tour to the United Kingdom will commence from June 20 at the Headingley in Leeds, which will also mark the beginning of the fresh World Test Championship cycle 2025-27.

India will aim to achieve yet another final appearance under Gill’s leadership after missing out on their third-straight appearance after losing against the Aussies Down Under. Notably, India were led by Virat Kohli and Rohit in WTC finals of 2021 and 2023, both of which they lost to New Zealand and Australia, respectively.

Gill succeeds Rohit, who had a stellar record as India’s Test captain before signing off. The 38-year-old led the side in 24 encounters, winning 12 of those, with nine games lost and three drawn. His winning percentage as captain stands at 50.00, which is the second-highest for an Indian captain with minimum 20 Tests.

Rohit’s last two series as captain, though, were shambolic to say the least. In the series against New Zealand, India were whitewashed 3-0 at home, their first loss at home in 12 years. Later, India lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 3-1, which also led to their exit from the WTC final spot. Rohit played three matches in the series and scored only 31 runs from six innings, and poor form led to the Indian skipper dropping himself for the fifth and final Test in Sydney, where Bumrah acted as the stand-in skipper.