With the Indian Test captaincy in flux, everyone’s talking about who might take over from Rohit Sharma. The main candidates are Jasprit Bumrah and Shubman Gill. Bumrah seemed like the obvious choice at first, but some think Gill might be a better fit because of Bumrah’s past injuries and heavy workload.
Sanjay Bangar, a former batting coach for India, pointed out that Bumrah may have lost his top pick status for similar reasons that led to Hardik Pandya being passed over for T20I captain – namely, his fitness issues. Bangar compared the situation, saying that the thought process behind naming Suryakumar Yadav as T20I captain was that they wanted someone who could definitely play every match.
While it seems like Gill is already stepping into the Test captaincy role, Bangar thinks the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) should be careful and also consider KL Rahul, who has proven himself in Tests. Bangar noted that Rahul has scored important runs and has done well, especially in overseas matches. Plus, at around 31 or 32 years old, he can still play through the next World Test Championship cycle.
Bangar believes Rahul would fit the current captaincy needs well, while Gill can be developed as a future leader. He emphasized that Gill is still young and has a lot of cricket ahead of him. By the time the next World Test Championship cycle ends, Gill should have gained plenty of experience to be considered for captaincy. So, for now, Bangar feels it makes sense to stick with Rahul for the immediate future.
