After months of speculation, it is now almost certain that Rohit Sharma won't be the captain ahead of India's Test tour of England starting on June 20. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel has decided to go with a new leader for the five-match Test series, which is also India's first Test series in the third World Test Championship Cycle (WTC) 2025-27.
According to an Indian Express report, the board is set to back the decision taken by the selectors. It is to be noted that Rohit Sharma's sacking has nothing to do with his age, but rather his poor performances in the red-ball format, wherein he has not scored a century for almost two years. However, it is almost certain that the veteran player will continue to lead India in the ODI format.
For the unversed, several reports had mentioned that Rohit Sharma was set to lead India in England, considering his recent success as a leader in the title-winning run in the Champions Trophy event in 2025 in Dubai. The Team India opening batter had also shared his excitement on a recent appearance on former Australia cricketer Michael Clarke's podcast, 'Beyond 23.' The veteran had talked about his excitement to lead India's fearsome pace attack, which boasts of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna.
The Agarkar-led panel had a series of discussions with the MI opener last month over his future in the Test team and also informed the BCCI about the vision of the Test team.
Decision to focus on the future main reason on Rohit Sharma being sacked as Test skipper
With the new WTC cycle set to start with the India vs England Test series, the five-member selection panel has decided to build on the Test team. Also, Rohit Sharma's poor returns with the bat in hand in the longest format of the game made things a bit easier for Agarkar & Co. to sack him from the captaincy.
“The selectors’ thought process is clear. They want a new leader for the England tour and Rohit doesn’t fit in as a captain, especially considering his red-ball form. They want to groom a young leader for the next Test cycle and the selection committee has informed the BCCI that Rohit won’t lead the team,” a source in the Indian board informed this newspaper.
In the last Test series against Australia, Rohit averaged a shambolic 6.20 in five innings. He also dropped himself from the team for the final Test. Selectors are looking for stability from a leader and want a player who leads from the front. Considering his recent struggles in the red-ball format, the selectors don't want to take the risk of captaining him for the important series against England.
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Also, one more point that went against the veteran Test opener was his mediocre average away from home. While he averages 40.57 from 67 Tests, his average drops drastically to 31.01 outside India. The opener averages 24.38 in Australia, 16.33 in South Africa, and a decent 44.64 in England.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir, when quizzed about Rohit's future on the Test team, maintained a stoic silence.
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“First things first, a coach’s job isn’t selecting the team. It is the job of the selectors to select. The coach only selects the 11 who will play a match. Neither those who coached before me were selectors nor am I a selector,” Gambhir said at ABP News’ ‘India At 2047′ Summit.
