Team India: Three players who can replace Rohit Sharma as Test captain in WTC 2023-25 Cycle

India’s first match in the WTC 2023-25 cycle is against West Indies in Dominica from July 12. Rohit Sharma will lead the team for the series and a change in command is expected to be seen with the South Africa series later this year.

India’s second consecutive defeat in the WTC final has added to the team’s tally of disappointing ICC campaigns. The Indian team would be in need of a captain who can make the transition period smooth and without any major hiccups. Here are the best three options who can replace Rohit Sharma as India’s next Test team captain.

Virat Kohli: The former India all-format captain Virat Kohli can be one of the best options to replace Rohit Sharma and become the captain once again. Kohli is the most successful Indian Test captain with 40 wins in 68 matches. The 34-year-old is also the first Indian captain to lead India to a Test series victory in Australia.

Under Kohli India finished as the number one ranked Test team five years in a row. He made the Indian Test team a force to reckon with. The fast bowling unit especially, bloomed massively under Kohli.

Kohli’s exit as Test team captain was untimely and surprised many. He has been missed dearly as the Test team captain and there have been reports that the option to rename him India’s Test captain can be explored in the coming months.

Ravindra Jadeja: Another strong candidate to lead the Indian Test team. Jadeja emerges as a strong candidate because of his all-round form in the last few years which has made him indispensable across formats.

Ashwin would also have made a good Test captain but he falls behind Jadeja when the overseas conditions are taken into consideration. Jadeja has been preferred over Ashwin in SENA nations. The southpaw also played ahead of Ashwin in the WTC final 2023.,

Jadeja has played 65 Test matches for India in the last 10 years and is a highly experienced cricketer. The 34-year-old has played under the captaincy of MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and that would help him in decision-making further.

The Saurashtra star, who has an experience of 120 first-class matches, can also act as a strong bridge between the youngsters and seniors in the team. Captains who can bowl as well as bat (like Ben Stokes and Pat Cummins) are in trend as well and it won’t be a bad decision to try out Jadeja.

Shreyas Iyer: Shreyas Iyer has proved his captaincy skills in the IPL and it’s a known fact that he has got a very cool, calm and thinking head over his shoulders. The 28-year-old is also touted to be one of the regulars in the middle-order of the Indian Test team.

The Mumbai batter has played a total of 65 first-class matches and scored 5366 runs at an average of 51.10. He also has made a great start to his Test career. The first 10 Test matches have seen him score 666 runs at an average of 44.40. A hundred and five fifties have come off his bat.

The biggest plus of naming Iyer as India’s next Test captain is that he could be groomed to serve the team for a long time. The batter also shares a great relationship with the seniors.

Note: Ajinkya Rahane has been renamed vice-captain of India’s Test team for West Indies Tests.