Gill Named Test Captain as Sudharsan, Arshdeep Earn Maiden Call-Ups for England Tour

India’s 18-man Test squad for the five-match series in England starting June 20 features some fresh faces alongside experienced players. Shubman Gill, 25, has been named captain, succeeding Rohit Sharma who retired from Test cricket recently. B Sai Sudharsan and Arshdeep Singh have been selected for the first time, while Karun Nair and Shardul Thakur make comebacks.

The selection panel, led by Ajit Agarkar, also appointed Rishabh Pant as vice-captain. Jasprit Bumrah, who was vice-captain during the Australia tour, was not considered for the captaincy due to workload management concerns.

The squad includes a strong batting lineup with Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and the returning Nair and Sudharsan. Dhruv Jurel joins as the second wicketkeeper behind Pant. Four allrounders—Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, and Nitish Kumar Reddy—provide balance to the side.

The pace attack comprises Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, and Arshdeep Singh, while Kuldeep Yadav is the only specialist spinner. Notably absent are Mohammed Shami, recovering from ankle surgery, and players like Sarfaraz Khan and Harshit Rana who were dropped after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

India’s Test series against England marks the start of the 2025-27 World Test Championship cycle. Matches will be played at Headingley, Edgbaston, Lord’s, Old Trafford, and The Oval, beginning with a warm-up game against India A in Beckenham from June 13 to 16.

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