India’s long-term Test future: How will Gautam Gambhir and Co handle Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli’s form and impending captaincy question? | Cricket News
A year of transition and transformations awaits Indian cricket in the longest format. The ongoing series is still alive. India could win in Sydney, retain the BGT, and are not yet out of the World Test Championship final race mathematically. But there are clear signs that the selectors, head coach Gautam Gambhir, and team management are thinking ahead and planning to leap into the future of Indian cricket.
In the process, they would have to take tough and important calls. Like the form and future of Captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, two struggling stalwarts; or who will be the captain when Rohit retires; or the immediate future of Rishabh Pant. India’s next big Test series is six months away. They travel for a five-match series to England, a place where aging Indian batsmen with vulnerable “outside-the-off-stump” game have horically struggled.
It is learnt that the chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, had a lengthy chat with Rohit after the team landed in Sydney. This was followed the five selectors going into an online huddle to discuss the way ahead for the Indian team.
READ MORE: Notes from the nets: Rohit Sharma seen counselling Jasprit Bumrah, Gambhir-Bumrah have long chat, Gill gets a tap on the shoulder and Jurel lines up for extended session
Rohit, one of India’s more successful openers in recent times, has endured a horrid series. His future will be weighed, and there are those who say that the Melbourne Test that India lost under him could well be his last.
The fate of Kohli, the flag-bearer of Indian batting since the retirement of Sachin Tendulkar, hangs precariously. Should he be given more time? Can he resurrect his career and enjoy a second wind? Does he have the skill, discipline, and motivation yet?
Whether to give him more time or phase him out would be the dilemma that selectors would be facing. Kohli could believe he has earned the right to quit on his own terms, but taking him to England would be fraught with risks.
A bigger predicament would be choosing the next captain. Jasprit Bumrah led admirably in Perth and will be under the scanner once again in Sydney. There are no other alternatives, unlike when MS Dhoni announced his shock retirement in Melbourne in 2014. Kohli was then ready to take over. Or when Anil Kumble stepped down, whereupon Dhoni assumed the reins.
Until this series, Rishabh Pant was a serious contender for captaincy. But his approach has come under fire, and his place in the eleven is under scrutiny. His shot selection has faced criticism during this series.
Gambhir dwelled on the point again in Sydney. “It is the team-first ideology that matters,” he said. “It’s a team sport and you’ve got to play what the team needs you to do. People can play their natural game. But still, in a team sport, individuals only contribute.”
READ MORE: Rohit Sharma opts to ‘rest’ for Sydney Test, Jasprit Bumrah to lead India in BGT finale
That could be Gambhir’s guiding principle going forward. The calendar is kind to him and those charting the transition route. There is ample time to reflect on the next line of India’s Test players after Sydney.
But do India have the right men to replace the two batting stalwarts? There isn’t a queue of batsmen waiting to take Kohli’s place in the side or someone who could slip in seamlessly into retired spin stalwart Ravichandran Ashwin’s seat. This period of transition is one of intrigue and interest.
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