While one can’t put a date on KL Rahul’s comeback from a thigh surgery, he is no longer in
leadership contention. Will skipper Rohit Sharma, considering his current form and fitness,
continue to play Test cricket for two more years and complete the next cycle, when he would
be nearly 38? That’s a million dollar question at the moment.
Another question is who is a better bet as vice-captain in next one year if Pujara is phased out
considering that the West Indies is one Test team against whom a youngster would have easy
initiation.
“The problem is that you give a West Indies Test series to Pujara and if he scores, you have got
to persist with him for one more year as there are no Tests after this till December. So do you
do that or straightaway get a youngster and get him ready for bigger battles,” the former
selector questioned.
For many, Shubman Gill at 23 is at the correct age where he can be prepared over time for a
leadership role. A short-term solution could be to hand it over to a sure-shot all-format player
like Ravindra Jadeja.
However, Gandhi asked why not someone like R Ashwin, who has a fantastic cricket brain.
“Why not Ashwin? And if you say that he is not a certainty overseas, then I would say even
Rahane, despite being a vice-captain, was dropped from playing XI at one point. So even Ashwin
can be considered or Rahane for a short time before Gill cements his place in Test XI,” Gandhi
opined.
