BCCI and Chief selector Ajit Agarkar has announced the rising Indian superstar Shubman Gill as a new red ball skipper for the England tour 2025. This appointment of Shubman Gill marks a new transition in Team India for the new WTC cycle from 2025 -27.
In what ultimately proved to be a formality, Shubman Gill was named as Rohit Sharma’s successor following a meeting of the selection committee at the cricket board headquarters at Wankhede Stadium. Shubman Gill will be India’s 37th Test captain. His deputy for the England tour will be Rishabh Pant.
Shubman Gill’s elevation to Test captaincy marks the beginning of a new era in Indian cricket, coming in the wake of Rohit Sharma’s retirement from the format. Alongside Rohit Sharma , who had led India since February 2022, fellow stalwarts Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin have also bid farewell to Tests since the start of India’s last Test series.
At 25 years and 258 days, Shubman Gill becomes the fifth-youngest cricketer to captain India in Tests, behind Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi (21 years, 77 days), Sachin Tendulkar (23 years, 169 days), Kapil Dev (24 years, 48 days), and Ravi Shastri (25 years, 229 days).
Team India for England tour 2025 under Shubman Gill
Taking from where Rohit Sharma left following his recent retirement announcement from India’s test cricket, the Men in White will now be led by Shubman Gill. BCCI named the 25-year-old young talent as India’s new Test cricket captain. Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been selected as vice-captain for the upcoming five-match Test series against England.
The announcement, made on Saturday by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, marks a significant new chapter in Indian cricket. Shubman Gill becomes one of the youngest players to lead the Test side, with selectors expressing strong faith in his temperament and leadership potential.
“Last year or so, we have looked at Shubman for leadership. We are hopeful he is the guy to take the team forward. It is a high-pressure job but he is a terrific player,” said chief selector Ajit Agarkar.
Ajit Agarkar clarified that Jasprit Bumrah, who has led India in Tests before, was not considered for captaincy as he is unlikely to play all five matches in England due to workload management. India’s 18-member squad for the England tour includes maiden Test call-ups for Sai Sudharsan and Arshdeep Singh alongside recalls for Karun Nair and Shardul Thakur. Meanwhile, Mohammed Shami, Sarfaraz Khan, Harshit Rana and Devdutt Padikkal don’t find a place.
Agarkar did not confirm where Shubman Gill would bat, but India have included players like Karun Nair — who last played a Test in 2017 and makes the cut on the back of a prolific domestic season — and the uncapped Sudharsan, both of whom are capable of slotting in at No. 3 or No. 4. KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal remain the incumbent openers, with Abhimanyu Easwaran named as the reserve. Padikkal, who batted at No. 3 during the Perth Test earlier this year, has been left out since he is recovering from an injury.
There is also a recall for Shardul Thakur, whose all-round capabilities are expected to be valuable in English conditions. He joins a group of all-rounders that includes Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, and Washington Sundar. Kuldeep Yadav, who was unfit for the Australia tour, returns as the lone frontline spinner.
Regarding fast bowling department India will miss the services of veteran Mohammed Shami. Ajit Agarkar Agarkar revealed that Shami was not considered for selection following advice from the medical team, which deemed him unfit to endure the rigours of Test bowling at this stage
Arshdeep Singh, a regular in India’s white-ball squads, has earned a Test call-up and will bolster a pace attack led by Jasprit Bumrah and also featuring Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna and Akash Deep. Harshit Rana, who featured in two Tests in Australia, was not included. Dhruv Jurel is the back-up keeper in the squad.
India Test squad for England : Shubman Gill (Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (VC, WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Arshdeep Singh
Interestingly, the upcoming series will be the start of the new World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27, and both sides will be hoping for a good start to the new cycle. Ahead of the series, former South Africa cricketer AB de Villiers took centre stage and opined that the youngsters in the side should take some responsibility in the upcoming tour and backed them to win the away series.
AB De Villiers in full support to Shubman Gill’s Indian Test team to do well in England series 2025
Former South African captain and ex-Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter AB de Villiers believes that India’s young Test squad led by Shubman Gill have the talent to achieve something special in England if they have the belief. He urged the younger players in the team to step up following the retirement of some seniors.
India will be without the services of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who announced their retirement from Test cricket earlier this month. Before that veteran off spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also announced his retirement from international midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year. The visitors will be without senior pacer Mohammad Shami as well as he is not yet fit for a Test comeback.
India will be led by Gill in England, while keeper-batter Rishabh Pant would be his deputy. Speaking at the sidelines of an event in Mumbai on Saturday, May 31, De Villiers shared his thoughts on the chances of India’s young team in England during the upcoming five-match series. He opined (as quoted by PTI):
“They’ve (youngsters) got to take some responsibility on in England; it’ll be a tough test, but they have all the talent in the world and, if they believe, maybe they can achieve something special.”
“Yes, it’s time for the younger guys to step up… Shubman Gill taking on the responsibility. There’s lots of talent in India and largely credit to the IPL for that, (it is) really giving great exposure to some of the youngsters at a very early age,” the 41-year-old went on to add.
De Villiers also admitted that the IPL has played a huge role in getting the Indian youngsters ready for international cricket and elaborated:
“We saw Vaibhav Suryavanshi this year (and) many other youngsters; they come in their first year and they look very mature and ready to play cricket and it’s a great platform for Indian cricket.”
India will play five Tests in England from June 20 to August 4. The first Test will be played at Headingley in Leeds, while the series will conclude with a match at the Kennington Oval in London. Before the start of the Test series, the visitors will also feature in a four-day warm-up match at Kent County Cricket Ground in Beckenham from June 13 to June 16.
Also Read: ENG vs IND: Gautam Gambhir On Split Captaincy: A New Era In Indian Cricket Leadership