Dinesh Karthik names two ‘all-format captain’ choices ( Source : X / Twitter )
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik picked two players who could take over all-format captaincy duties for India after Rohit Sharma. However, the veteran didn’t name KL Rahul or Jasprit Bumrah.
Rohit retired from T20I cricket after guiding India to the T20 World Cup title earlier this year. Suryakumar Yadav pipped Hardik Pandya to become India’s new captain in the shortest format of the game. Rohit continues to captain India in Tests and ODIs. However, the BCCI has historically preferred all-format captains, and Karthik named Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill as potential contenders to take up the prestigious role in the future.
“Two players come straight into my mind who are young, who have the potential, and definitely can lead India in all the formats shortly. One Rishabh Pant, two Shubman Gill. Both of them are captains of IPL teams and have captained India. I do think in time, they have the chance to become the all-format captain for India as well,” said Karthik on the ‘HEY CB with DK’ show on Cricbuzz.
The 26-year-old Pant has played 33 Tests, 31 ODIs, and 76 T20Is since making his international debut in February 2017. Meanwhile, the 25-year-old Gill has represented the Men in Blue in 25 Tests, 47 ODIs, and 21 T20Is since January 2019.
Pant has been excellent in Test cricket, winning India several matches from the clutches of defeat. However, his place in the white-ball setups are under the scanner as he averages 33.50 in ODIs and 23.25 in T20Is. Meanwhile, Gill averages a commendable 58.20 in ODIs but it falls to 35.52 in Tests and further down to 30.42 in the shortest format.
Also Read: If I were given a question of who would bat for my life, it would be Kohli: Dinesh Karthik
The two players were recently in action during the first-round encounter between India A and India B last week. Gill led India A in the four-day encounter played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Meanwhile, Pant played for India B under Abhimanyu Easwaran’s leadership. They won the match by 76 runs to take all six points from the game.