Kris Srikkanth reveals the reason why Shubman Gill shouldn’t lead India in Tests

Former Indian World Cup-winning cricketer Kris Srikkanth has come out openly, stating that Shubman Gill shouldn’t be the one who should be leading Team India in the longest format of the game after the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

Notably, Kohli and Rohit announced sudden retirements from the format, which led to the BCCI and selection committee looking for a new captain for this particular format. Srikkanth feels Jasprit Bumrah could be a perfect replacement as he has enough experience and is a definite starter in the XI.

"Who's a ready-made captaincy candidate now? Shubman Gill? I don't think he is still a certainty in the XI. You're not handing the captaincy to KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant. Otherwise, you give it to Jasprit Bumrah. The other choice is Bumrah. You say, 'Boss, you're the captain'. And whichever Test match he doesn't play, you give KL Rahul the responsibility,” Srikkanth told India Today.

Moreover, Srikkanth feels Gill hasn’t proved himself in the overseas conditions like South Africa, England and Australia to emerge as the new captain of the team. He added that in Bumrah’s absence, either KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant can take over the captaincy duties as they are constant starters in the XI.

"As of now, I think Bumrah should be the captain. If I were the chairman of selectors, I would make Bumrah the captain. And then I'd say, 'Boss, play whichever matches you want to'. I'd then appoint KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant as vice-captain, because these are certainties in the XI," he added.

"There's nothing wrong with that. You can't be appointing someone as captain just for the sake of it. I don't know what the selectors are thinking, but this is my view," he stated.

"A lot is being said about Shubman Gill, but he is yet to score big runs. In England, Australia, South Africa - he has never scored. That means you're thrusting everything on him. Let Shubman Gill establish himself in Test cricket. He is a king in home conditions,” he observed.

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