The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced on Thursday via an official statement that Jasprit Bumrah would lead India in the rescheduled fifth Test against England in Edgbaston. The match was originally scheduled to take place in Birmingham.
On Friday, play will get underway in the decisive game of the series in Birmingham. The head coach Rahul Dravid’s statement on Wednesday to the media that Rohit Sharma had not yet been “ruled out” created an air of uncertainty around the batsman’s availability.
He went on to say that it was self-evident that Rohit would have to have a negative result, and that he would be subjected to another COVID test on Wednesday night and Thursday morning. During the first day of the current warm-up game against Leicestershire, Rohit got the opportunity to bat, but he did not participate in the game on the second day. During the second Indian innings, he did not come to bat.
On the eve of the match, just seconds before the captain’s news conference, it was announced that Jasprit Bumrah would lead the team in place of Rohit, who would not be able to participate. Rishabh Pant, who keeps wickets for the team, has been selected to serve as the match’s vice captain. Recently, he captained the Twenty20 International squad when they took on South Africa in a five-game series.
During India’s match against Leicestershire on their tour, Rohit Sharma returned a positive test for the COVID-19 virus.
Jasprit Bumrah will be the first fast bowler to lead India in a Test match, and he will also become the 36th Test captain of India. Kapil Dev was the last fast bowler to lead India in a Test match, and that match was against Pakistan at Bengaluru in March 1987. This match was also the final Test match for the legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar. Jasprit Bumrah will be the first fast bowler to lead India in a Test match and he will now become the
Before the squad traveled for the UK tour, Ravichandran Ashwin was also found to have a positive test result for COVID-19. He was tardy in joining the squad in England. At this point, the matches in the UK do not take place inside of a bio-bubble. India, too, recently played host to South Africa without using a bio-bubble.
“It has been decided that Indian Cricket Team Captain Rohit Sharma would not participate in the rescheduled fifth test match against England, which will begin on Friday. On Thursday morning, Rohit had a RAT Test, which revealed a positive COVID-19 result “In a formal statement, the BCCI said.
According to additional information provided in the press release, “The All-India Senior Selection Committee has appointed Mr. Jasprit Bumrah as captain for the forthcoming Test and Mr. Rishabh Pant as his deputy.”
As a result of Bumrah’s promotion to the position of Test captain for India’s next Edgbaston match, the year 2022 is shaping up to be the one in which the national team will have the most number of different captains across all three forms. This will be the most in any calendar year. He is also the eighth person to be in charge of India since 2021. Bumrah has played in 29 tests so far and has a total of 123 wickets to his name, including eight five-wicket hauls.
Before a COVID-19 outbreak in the Indian camp forced the cancellation of the third and final test of the series against England in 2018, India headed by Virat Kohli had already seized a 2-1 lead in the series.
While this was going on, England decided on its starting XI for the test, and both Zak Crawley and Alex Lees would continue to be supported in the team. James Anderson will make a comeback while Sam Billings will serve as the Wicket-keeper.
