‘I don’t want Jasprit Bumrah to be made captain...': Ravi Shastri names his choice for India's next Test skipper

Ravi Shastri has called for a forward-looking approach in appointing India's next Test captain following Rohit Sharma's retirement from the format, strongly advocating for youth to be prioritised over experience. In a conversation on The ICC Review, the former India head coach outlined his preference for either Shubman Gill or Rishabh Pant to take the reins, while firmly opposing the idea of handing over leadership to pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. India's Jasprit Bumrah after the Sydney Test earlier this year(AFP)

Jasprit Bumrah was the Indian vice-captain during Rohit Sharma's leadership over the past year, and also led the side in two Tests during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2024/25. While India won a match in his captaincy in Perth, Bumrah was forced to exit mid-match due to back spasms, with the side eventually losing in Sydney.

"See for me, Jasprit would have been the obvious choice after Australia," Shastri said. "But I don’t want Jasprit to be made captain and then you lose him as a bowler."

Citing Bumrah’s long-standing back troubles, including a layoff of nearly three months earlier this year after the Sydney setback, Shastri emphasised that the 31-year-old needs to be preserved as a strike weapon rather than be distracted by the weight of captaincy.

"I think he (Bumrah) has to take his body one game at a time. He's coming back now after a serious injury," Shastri pointed out.

"He'll have played IPL cricket, which is four-over cricket. Now will come the test of bowling 10 overs, 15 overs. And the last thing you want is some pressure on his mind being captain as well.”

Shastri instead turned the spotlight towards younger leaders with longer careers ahead of them, highlighting Gill and Pant as ideal long-term picks. Both have captained their IPL franchises, Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants, respectively, and are considered natural successors in the red-ball setup.

“You groom somebody and I would say Shubman’s looked very good. Give him the opportunity. He's 25, 26 years of age, even give him time,” he said.

"There's Rishabh as well. I think these two are the obvious ones I'm looking at because of their age and they have a decade ahead of them. So, let them learn.

“They've got experience as captains now, captaining their franchise and that makes a difference.”

India A squad announced

BCCI announced India A for two first-class matches against the England Lions. The two matches are significant as they will provide an opportunity for several cricketers to stake a claim in the India Test squad, which is slated to play a five-match series against England.

Abhimanyu Easwaran was named captain, and the squad also features experienced cricketers Karun Nair and Shardul Thakur, both of whom were rewarded for their excellent domestic seasons.

Batters Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan will join the squad ahead of the second match. Currently, they are serving as the backbone of the Gujarat Titans' batting line-up, with 508 runs in 11 matches and 509 runs in 11 matches respectively.

India A squad: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shardul Thakur, Ishan Kishan, Manav Suthar, Tanush Kotian, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Harshit Rana, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sarfaraz Khan, Tushar Deshpande, Harsh Dubey.

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