Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has lauded BCCI’s decision to appoint Shubman Gill as the new Test captain of the Indian team. Gill, 25, succeeded Rohit Sharma in the role and is ready to lead India in the upcoming five-match Test series against England. Gill will lead a new-look squad after Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirement from the longest format last month. Ponting explained why it was the right decision to appoint Gill as the captain, not Bumrah.
"I actually think it's the right move. I know there's a lot of other people out there, pundits out there saying they can't understand why it wasn't Bumrah and why they have gone to Shubman, but I think it's pretty simple," Ponting said on the ICC Review.
"Bumrah's injuries are holding him back a bit in the last couple of years and you don't want that with a captain. You can't have a captain coming in and missing games here and there, so I think it's I think it's the right decision. Now that they've made it, it's one they've got to stick with and give him a good crack at it for, for a long period of time. Even just looking back at the way he's handled this current GT (Gujarat Titans) team through this IPL, I think leadership sits really well with him."
The Test series against England will begin on June 20 with the first game at Headingley.