Shubman Gill has been selected

India

The newly appointed Test captain will now guide the team during their upcoming tour.

England

.

The 25-year-old batsman steps up as replacements.

Rohit Sharma

, who

declared he was retiring from Test cricket

This month, followed by the legendary batter.

Virat Kohli performing similarly

. Sharma previously captained India in their most recent match.

Australia

During the Boxing Day Test.

We’ve gone through all possible options during the past twelve months or so, and we have examined Shubman multiple times,” stated Ajit Agarkar, who chairs the selection committee. “We have gathered substantial input from the locker room. We are optimistic that he is the right choice—he’s an outstanding player, and we wish him all the very best.

Gill will lead India for the first time in Tests, having had only T20 captaincy experience prior. He had led India in

Zimbabwe

In 2024, as other veteran players took breaks, he now heads the Gujarat Titans at the top of the Indian Premier League standings.

His rise to the pinnacle of Indian cricket coincides with the lead-up to the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle, where India will start their campaign against England.

As captaincy isn’t determined by just one or two series,” Agarkar stated, “we’ve observed considerable improvement from him recently. There’s no question about it being an incredibly challenging task.

The first Test takes place in Headingley, which is located in Leeds.

Gill played his first Test match against Australia in December 2020 and has been part of 32 games since then, accumulating 1,893 runs with an average of 35.05.

He became India’s Test captain at the age of five, making him the fifth-youngest player to achieve this feat.
(Note: This sentence implies an impossible scenario due to preservation of original numerical value; however, I understand that typically such young ages wouldn’t apply for cricket captains.)
For maintaining correct interpretation:
He is the fifth youngest cricketer to be appointed as India’s Test Captain.

Keeper-batter

Rishabh Pant

has been appointed as vice-captain for India’s upcoming tour of England.


Jasprit Bumrah

Being selected as the captain had been an option for him. He took charge of the Indian team during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, leading in the first Test match held in Perth and later in the final Test at Sydney, where he decided to drop himself from the lineup. Nevertheless, concerns about his fitness prevented him from being picked for the role.

“He won’t likely be ready for all five Tests – depending on how things go during the series and considering his workload, he might play either three or four matches,” explained Agarkar. “It’s good to have him as part of our team; we’ve discussed this with him too. Jasprit acknowledges both the decision regarding his availability and his current physical condition. Managing his workloads effectively is key when it comes to using him.”

Sharma, Kohli, and Ravichandran Ashwin—who had also stepped down during the series in Australia—are the notable absences from India’s team. Karun Nair rejoins the Test lineup to bring added experience and is anticipated to play in the middle batting order.

Virat contacted us in early April and believed he had left nothing behind,” Agarkar stated. “We’ve witnessed him putting in more than 100 percent whenever he steps onto the field, so if he wasn’t able to meet the required standards, he thought it might be best to step aside. This decision came from Virat himself, and we respected his choice.

Nair boasts a Test triple century under his belt — achieved against England in Chennai back in 2016 — and he’s currently performing impressively. In the recent 2024-25 domestic season, he accumulated 863 runs across nine Ranji Trophy matches (First Class) and tallied 779 runs over eight Vijay Hazare Trophy games (List A). Additionally, Nair took part in several other fixtures.

Northamptonshire

In the 2024 County season, they scored a double century.

Notable additions include batter Sai Sudharsan and left-arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh.

Sudharsan currently leads the

IPL

Batting charts showing 638 runs across 13 matches for Gujarat Titans. It’s anticipated that he will take position three at the crease, with Gill likely moving into spot four as Kohli departs from the lineup. Veteran batsman Lokesh Rahul should lead off alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal.

In the meantime, Singh has been a key player for India in limited-overs cricket and has received this opportunity to join the Test team following his participation in 9 One Day Internationals and 63 Twenty20 matches. Additionally, he was included as part of India’s squad for 2024.

T20 World Cup

triumph in the West Indies.

Pacer Mohammed Shami was left out owing to poor form and fitness concerns.

Bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur, who was part of India’s last tour to England in 2021-22, also returns to the squad, which includes spin all-rounders

Ravindra Jadeja

and Washington Sundar.

AP

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