Rohit Sharma or KL Rahul, who will replace Virat Kohli as India's Test captain?

Indian skipper Virat Kohli called it quits as India's Test captain on Saturday, leaving selectors in quandary to pick his successor. There are several candidates who could replace Kohli as captain in the red-ball format, the most prominent of them being Rohit Sharma, who is already leading the charge in ODIs and T20Is. Let's take a look at potential names who could take over as India's next Test skipper. 

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma is highly likely to get the opportunity to lead the Indian Test side following Kohli's abrupt decision to resign. Sharma has an impeccable record as captain, both in the Indian Premier League and at the international level. Apart from winning a record five titles for Mumbai Indians, Sharma has also led India to multiple victories, including an Asia Cup triumph in 2018. It was under Sharma's captaincy that India registered the famous win against Bangladesh in a trilateral series in Sri Lanka, where Dinesh Karthik hit the winning runs and saw his team cross the finish line. 

Sharma was recently appointed the vice-captain of the Indian Test side following the sacking of out-of-form player Ajinkya Rahane. However, due to an injury, Sharma was ruled out from the series against South Africa and he couldn't play his first Test as Kohli's deputy in the red-ball format. The BCCI is expected to ask Sharma to take over as India's new Test captain, according to reports. It's possible that the official announcement may be made within the next few days.

Rohit Sharma is already the captain of the Indian squad in one-day internationals and T20Is, and his promotion to Test captain might offer the team with much-needed stability after three resignations in the last four months.

KL Rahul

KL Rahul has already been appointed India's vice-captain in white-ball formats and is now one of the contenders to take over as the new Test captain following Kohli's resignation. Rahul was named vice-captain in Tests against South Africa in the absence of Rohit Sharma. And after Kohli was forced out of the second Test due to an upper back spasm, he even got the opportunity to lead the Test squad for the first time. Rahul has previous captaincy experience, having led the Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League for two years in a row.

Rishabh Pant

Although inexperienced, Rishabh Pant could be amongst the names being considered to replace Kohli as India's next Test captain. The aggressive batter and a chirpy wicketkeeper was dubbed the next MS Dhoni when he first appeared in the scene. He finally got a taste of captaincy last year when he was asked to lead the Indian Premier League side Delhi Capitals in absence of Shreyas Iyer. It turned out to be one of the best things ever happened to Pant as he successfully led the side to the playoffs. However, the Capitals fell short in the knockout stage and were eliminated after two back-to-back losses. 

Shreyas Iyer

Indian batter Shreyas Iyer, who recently made his red-ball debut, could be one of the candidates to replace Kohli as India's Test captain. Iyer has the experience of leading a squad as he was the captain of the Indian Premier League side Delhi Capitals for two consecutive years. Iyer, however, doesn't have the experience of leading the Indian men's side in any format of the game. Will he still be appointed the new Test captain? Iyer could be made the captain with an eye on the future because Rohit Sharma will not be able to lead the side for too long considering he is already 34. 

Image: PTI