Gill steps out of Ro-Ko’s shadow; seizes his moment with a captains’ knock
What was billed as a series to assess India’s seasoned stars has quickly turned into an opportunity for Shubman Gill to stamp his authority on the ODI captaincy.
Veteran spin-bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been named vice-captain of the Indian Test squad for the upcoming two-match home series against West Indies, his first time in the role in this format, though he has previously served as deputy in ODIs and T20Is.
Shubman Gill will continue as captain in what will be his second Test series in charge, following his debut stint in England earlier this year. Rishabh Pant, who was the vice-captain during the England tour before fracturing his foot during the fourth Test, has not recovered in time and remains at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.
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Dhruv Jurel and N Jagadeesan are the designated wicketkeepers, with Jurel expected to take the gloves.
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Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah is part of the squad despite the tight turnaround, just one day separates the Asia Cup final on September 28 in Dubai and the first Test in Ahmedabad, starting October 2.
“This team has been picked for both the Tests, so he’s available for both Tests. We’ve had a fair break after England. He didn’t play the fifth Test [at The Oval] either. So there’s been a five-week break. Even this tournament [Asia Cup] has been fairly spaced out till the last week. So no, he’s ready and keen to play both Test matches,” BCCI’s selection committee chief Ajit Agarkar
From the expanded squad that toured England, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Akash Deep, Anshul Kamboj, Arshdeep Singh and Shardul Thakur have missed out, alongside Pant. Abhimanyu, Akash Deep and Kamboj have instead been named in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup against Vidarbha starting October 1 in Nagpur.
Akash Deep had recently been at the CoE recovering from a niggle that ruled him out of the Duleep Trophy and recent India A games.
Axar Patel, Devdutt Padikkal and Jagadeesan come in, having been drafted for the final England Test after Pant’s injury.
Expected more from Karun: Agarkar on right-hander’s exclusion
Karun Nair, who made his much-awaited comeback to Test cricket after eight years, failed to impress the selectors, managing just 205 runs in eight innings in England with a best of 57, and was shown the door.
Reflecting on Nair’s exclusion, BCCI chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar explained at the press conference in Dubai, “We expected more from Karun. Padikkal offers a little bit more at this point. Wish we could give everyone 15-20 Tests, unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. Padikkal was in the Test squad in Australia, played against England in Dharamsala, got a fifty there. He’s shown some decent form. Frankly, we expected a bit more from Karun.”
The squad otherwise retains a settled look. With spin likely to play a larger role at home, India have gone with Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Axar as spin-bowling allrounders, along with wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav. Nitish Kumar Reddy is the fast-bowling allrounder, while Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna make up the pace attack.
The series, to be played in Ahmedabad (October 2) and Delhi (October 10), is India’s second assignment in the 2025–27 World Test Championship cycle. After drawing the five-Test Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series in England 2-2, India sit third on the points table with 46.67 percentage points (28 of 60 available). Australia (100) and Sri Lanka (66.67) occupy the top two spots, while West Indies remain winless after a 0-3 defeat to Australia in June-July.
India squad: Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, N Jagadeesan, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav
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