[AtheK]

Absolutely not for Pujara and Rahane, boat has sailed. Karun Nair definitely and also make Bumrah the full time captain and Gill the deputy, when bumrah is not playing or injured he can take over and nurture his captaincy, more then that he needs to perform consistently.

[motorworks]

For the upcoming England series, batting is not the biggest concern. It will be a toss up between people like Karun, Shreyas etc, but we have options. Its the bowling which is of huge concern. Shami looks like he isnt fit and may not be even selected. Bumrah is sure not to play all 5 tests. And then we have Siraj, who has been a bit inconsistent. Prasidh is new. The issue is pace. We have hardly had new talent come up off late, the team has been over dependent on Bumrah, and guys like Siraj and Shami too have been playing almost all formats for the last 2-3 years now.

Spin department is slightly better off, Kuldeep and Jadeja are not that injury prone, so they are good to go, and anyway in England spin may not play as big a role as pace. But here too, there is no back up for Ashwin. I know Ashwin’s form wasnt great off late, but he was always a genuine wicket taker. And if you take away kuldeep due to some injury or something like that, then again there is no backup.

So all in all, its the bowling unit which is a much bigger worry and unfortunately this is an issue which will take much longer time to resolve than finding the right batsmen.

[libranof1987]

India has pulled out of the 2025 edition of the Asia Cup, which was to be held in India in September, due to the ongoing situation with Pakistan.

https://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/bcci...report-8449794

[ValarMorghulis]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

India has pulled out of the 2025 edition of the Asia Cup, which was to be held in India in September, due to the ongoing situation with Pakistan.

https://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/bcci...report-8449794

This has been refuted by BCCI.

BCCI Rejects Reports Claiming India Have Withdrawn From Asia Cup

Link

[PPS]

Originally Posted by motorworks

But here too, there is no back up for Ashwin.

I think Kuldeep is ready to take the mantle & fill Ashwin's place. Once Jadeja retires, there is a like for like replacement in the form of Axar Patel. But yes specifically in the Off-spin department there really isn't anyone I can think of who's ready. They had selected some off-spinner for the remainder of that Australian tour, not sure how good he is.

[harry10]

Originally Posted by ValarMorghulis

This has been refuted by BCCI.


Link

BCCI denying the opportunity to make money is something which has never happened in our history. We will keep seeing all these fake reports which I am sure bcci fields themselves from anonymous sources and in the end they will milk the money. They let DC vs Pbks happened in Dharmashala knowing fully well how the war situation was brewing. They are shameless.

[PPS]

Originally Posted by harry10

BCCI denying the opportunity to make money is something which has never happened in our history.

BCCI ideally should have completely isolated Pakistan Cricket, especially now that Jay Shah is at the helm! Stop playing in any tournaments which feature Pakistan. The Board already has a lot of money in abundance. But what you see instead is the greed to get their share of revenue from Ind-Pak matches. Severe ties with any country that tours Pakistan. Use your influence for some good reason apart from money!

[volkman10]

Shubman Gill named India’s new Test captain.

[AtheK]

It was a foregone conclusion after apparently Bumrah himself told BCCI that he can not play 5 tests in a row.

It is an investment for future and so far he has led GT well, good to see Nair also getting a nod, he might or might not play but good to take him.

KL Rahul
Jaiswal
Gill
Nair
Nitish Reddy
Pant
Jadeja
Shardul/Kuldeep Yadav
Siraj
Akashdeep
Bumrah

They could have tested Sarfaraz in Overseas condition as well.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by AtheK

It was a foregone conclusion after apparently Bumrah himself told BCCI that he can not play 5 tests in a row.

Yep, Pandya and Bumrah are unlikely to be made permanent captain of any format given their fragile bodies.

It is an investment for future and so far he has led GT well, good to see Nair also getting a nod, he might or might not play but good to take him.

I hope Gill makes the most of it, and transforms himself the way Kohli did. The onus of rebuilding the team is on him - while Ashwin, Kohli and Sharma are already out, there's a good chance we might see a few more retirements in the near future. Unfortunately, Gambhir at the helm of things isn't very comforting - he's taken/gotten far more credit than due for KKR's triumph, and seems to have built a halo around him.

Iyer and KL Rahul must be ruing their lost opportunity at captainship. If not for his unfortunate accident and the dip in form (may or may not be related), Pant seemed set to be captain.

[Bhargav7]

Shreyas Iyer did not utilise his chances in test cricket well. Totally understand dropping him. But he went back to Ranji, and played fairly well - exactly what BCCI was expecting.

Him not being picked even for the A team is fairly surprising. I personally feel he should be in the playing 11, probably at No.5 coming ahead of Pant.

[Eddy]

What I am interested in is Gill's strategy for our bowling. Will he be defensive and play 4 bowlers, including Jadeja? Or will he target 20 wickets and play four bowlers + Jadeja?

Playing 11 for the first game. But only if Thakur is a proper 4th seamer - 20 overs in a day at 3 RPO and 1 wicket.

Jaiswal
Rahul
Sudarshan
Gill
Nair
Pant
Jadeja
Thakur
Bumrah
Arshdeep
Siraj

[Emvi]

Originally Posted by Eddy

What I am interested in is Gill's strategy for our bowling. Will he be defensive and play 4 bowlers, including Jadeja? Or will he target 20 wickets and play four bowlers + Jadeja?

I don't think Gill alone would be calling the shots when it comes to deciding the playing XI, to begin with. It would be a team decision - comprising the coaching staff, senior pros, and the captain himself. It will take some time for Gill to grow into a 'true captain,' if I may put it that way. I'm also a bit apprehensive about whether Gambhir might interfere too much in the decision-making process.

[VWAllstar]

My playing XI for the first two test against England would be:

S Sudarshan
S Gill
K Nair
Y Jaiswal
R Jadeja
R Pant
N Reddy
K Yadav
J Bhumrah
Arshdeep Singh
P Krishna

Sai and Gill have been fantastic in the last 8 weeks batting together. It would be wise to let them continue as opening partners with such momentum. I know, different formats and venues still good for a try.

[NomadSK]

With NZ series and BGT series and now with this team and self-obsessed coach, we are on a downward spiral for test team. Guy who averages 20 overseas and has a big technical flaw of playing across the wicket, is our test captain and without tactical acumen, guess Gambhir from the dressing room will play the shots. He must be praying to get flat wickets and good sunny conditions on his first tour as captain, because if ball starts to move, he and his co. would be a sitting duck. Looks like captaincy criteria for BCCI is more marketable face. I hope he doesn't burn down Bumrah.

Bumrah would have been a best choice as a captain the way he led in the BGT series, neither under bowling himself nor over bowling and right changes at the right time and declaring at the fag end of the day. I know fitness would be his issue, but then when he's not supposed to play, hand over the baton to Gill.

Most of the team selected are impulsive shot playing batsmen, English team would be practicing hard in the slip cordon. This team looks pretty weak on paper. Sudarshan why? Over his IPL heroics then we are already on a wrong foot. Why not Easwaran in playing XI?

Jadeja is over his prime since last 3 years, this guy is pretty lucky to have played cricket for India this long. Pant has completely lost his game, unless someone gets into his head and tell him to play like he played down-under where he was instrumental in 2 wins, else there will be people to call him "STUPID" again.

To me, only Jaiswal looks to be a proper backfoot player with solid defense. Arshdeep/Thakur would be lethal if there is some help from the wicket/conditions. I would have liked to see A Kamboj in the team in place of Siraj.

Looks like this team is in formation over next few years, I don't have high hopes with this team/coach atleast for this English series. Plenty of talent no doubt, but in terms of experiences in overseas conditions, it does look a bit thin.

3-0 loss against NZ at home, 3-1 loss at recent BGT away, now let's see what would be the score after the series. So far Gambhir is the only common link among all these teams.