The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced that Jasprit Bumrah would lead India in the fifth Test against England starting on Friday (July 1) in Edgbaston as regular skipper Rohit Sharma was tested positive for Covid-19 again on Wednesday.
Bumrah will be the 36th cricketer to captain India in the longest format since the country first played in 1932.
“It is a very big honour. It is a very big achievement,” Bumrah said while speaking to the reporters. “We did a test today morning as well. Rohit tested positive. Then I was officially informed that I was going to lead the side.”
Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant has been named the vice-captain of the team for the upcoming encounter. India leads the five-match Test leg 2-1, and a win or even a draw will help them seal the series against hosts England in their backyard for the first time since 2007.
With Rohit out of the Test, Cheteshwar Pujara or Hanuma Vihari is likely to open the batting with Shubman Gill. Mayank Agarwal has been added to the Indian squad as replacement for Rohit.
“Mayank is here just as cover. It is likely to be Pujara-Gill combination that is going to open the batting. There is an outside chance for Hanuma Vihari to open as he has done the job in a stop-gap arrangement in Australia during the 2018 series. But chances of Pujara opening are way more,” a senior BCCI official quoted as saying to PTI.