While India is gearing up for the new ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the Test career of Rohit Sharma seems somewhat uncertain, with major changes on the horizon. As the Indian captain heads off to Dubai with the team, news about Rohit Sharma’s something future in Test cricket has taken the cricketing world by storm.
Reports suggest that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is contemplating a major overhaul of leadership and that Jasprit Bumrah is the frontrunner to be the Test captain.
Rohit Sharma’s Test Captaincy Might Have to Go Down
Though captaining India in all formats with high success rates, Rohit Sharma’s long-term future as captain of the Test team was questioned. 2024 proved to be one of the most challenging seasons for the veteran opener, especially in the longest format of the game. Rohit went through a rough patch in Tests, averaging below 25 and getting into the 20s and below almost every time he crossed the line. In his last eight Test matches, he ended up getting just 164 runs at a miserable average of 10.9.
His poor form and India’s results in Tests under him raised eyebrows within the BCCI. India suffered a whitewash in home conditions against New Zealand, and three Test losses in Australia. These challenges led the selectors to start rethinking his position as Test captain and vision for the future.
BCCI Announces Fresh Strategy to Appoint Jasprit Bumrah as Captain for the Test Format
The new twist that may spell trouble for Rohit’s Test career is that the BCCI is thinking of appointing Jasprit Bumrah as the new Test captain. Currently, Vice-captain for Tests, Bumrah is being groomed to take over from Rohit, as the England tour in June-July 2025 is likely to be critical for Bumrah’s captaincy. It’s said the BCCI is already making calls with Bumrah’s captaincy in mind; they consider him as the next face of Indian Test cricket.
Their decision to leave him out of the Champions Trophy 2025 was not just due to injury concerns but also to prepare him for the captaincy. With Bumrah’s pace and fitness affected by a slew of injuries that have flared up intermittently, including not being 100% fit to bowl all the overs, BCCI thinks Bumrah, with leadership experience such as this, filling in during Rohit’s absence, should be a top candidate for the captaincy.
Rohit Sharma’s probable retirement from Test Cricket
Rohit Sharma, while publicly stating that he has no plans yet to retire from international cricket, might be evaluated for probable retirement from Test cricket by the selectors. There’s been a thought—the next World Test Championship final slated for 2025 would deem Rohit 38 years of age and by that time would be nearing 40 years of age. Especially with the ongoing barren patch, a permanent resolution regarding the captaincy gently highlights itself on the BCCI’s agenda.
While the BCCI is keeping an eye on the future, sources have revealed the thought of Bumrah being a long-term leadership option. So while Rohit is likely to hold his fort in limited-overs formats, it seems likely that his Indian Test captaincy will conclude,
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Jasprit Bumrah’s Leadership Experience
Jasprit Bumrah has already showcased his poise in leadership roles under some high-pressure situations. In 2022, in the fifth Test against England, when Rohit Sharma was unavailable due to COVID-19, Bumrah led India as captain. Though India lost the match, Bumrah did show promise as the leader, and during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia in 2023, his leadership trait showed once again.
All through the Perth Test of the 2023 series, Bumrah was able to guide India to a memorable victory-just about the only highlight of an otherwise torturous series, but his captaincy was to last shorter when he succumbed to injury and could not complete the last Test in Sydney. However, despite everything, Bumrah’s leadership skills are said to be a key reason why the BCCI wants to groom him for captaincy.
Need for Change in Leadership
All that pressure mounted on Rohit Sharma combined with his declining form in Test cricket has called for a change in leadership. The cricketing world has scrutinized Rohit’s captaincy on the basis of India’s recent poor performances in the Test series. The selectors, therefore, have sought a new face for a long-term tenure leading the Indian team in the longest format. Bumrah is being tipped as the front-runner, and the BCCI wants to develop a model of leadership that keeps India at the helm of Test cricket.
What Lays Ahead for Rohit Sharma?
The impending changes in leadership may not definitely seal the fate of Rohit Sharma in international cricket. The 36-year-old has already proved himself as one of the finest limited-overs players, having taken India to many victories, among them theirs being the T20 World Cup. While the BCCI nourishes Bumrah to become the leader in Test cricket, Rohit may continue as captain in ODIs and T20Is when one looks to weigh the leadership deed and even success in those formats.
The confirming retirement of Rohit Sharma from Test cricket puts an end to an era of India’s longest-form cricket. Nevertheless, it could give chances to the New Age leaders with Bumrah in command, as the Indian Team heads into the next chapter of their Test cricket story.
A Turning Point in Indian Cricket
These developments around Rohit Sharma’s Test career represent an important watershed moment for Indian cricket. Although he continues to be a major player in limited-overs cricket, the BCCI’s monumental decision to anoint Jasprit Bumrah as captain of the future Test has essentially signaled a new era for the Indian Test team. His experience in leadership and growing relevance in the present Indian team make him the most likely successor to Rohit in the Test format.
With the 2025 Champions Trophy just around the corner, all eyes will be on Rohit Sharma’s limited-overs leadership in India as the BCCI goes through a transition in Test cricket. It may well be that the tour of England, coming ahead with a fresh leadership vision, could very well be a game-changer for both Bumrah as well as Indian cricket.
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