"I don’t expect any miracles" - Former India wicket-keeper slams team management's lack of planning for transition ahead of ENG vs IND 2025 Tests
Former India wicket-keeper Kiran More has criticised head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar for not anticipating the departures of seniors and planning the Test team's transition. The Men in Blue had to deal with the retirements of Ravichandran Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli from the red-ball side ahead of the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.
The selection committee named the squad for the upcoming England tour, featuring Shubman Gill as the new captain, taking over from Rohit Sharma. The absence of three prominent players in the side officially kick-started the transition as the side includes a slew of inexperienced players.
The likes of Sai Sudharsan and Arshdeep Singh received their maiden red-ball call-ups, while Karun Nair, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and Dhruv Jurel do not have much international experience under their belts. The selectors, embracing the new era, resisted the temptation to go back to experienced players like Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara, or Shreyas Iyer.
Kiran More opined that Team India will suffer in England due to poor planning, and might take up to two years to form a settled Test side.
“First thing, I'm surprised. The whole selection committee and coach should've thought about this, that this (transition) was going to come. Now, suddenly, everybody has woken up and now they're asking who should be the next captain. They should've been prepared. I feel we haven't prepared for 1.5 years, this is a big wake-up call for us," More said on Jio Hotstar.
“I don’t expect any miracles on this (England) tour because I think India are going to struggle," he added.
Team India squad for five-match Test series against England
Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (VC & WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav
"When guys like that retire, always big holes to fill" - Ajit Agarkar on handling Team India's transition in Test cricket
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar was asked about the departures of the seniors which has led to some radical measures, including the appointment of a new captain at such a critical juncture.
“When guys like that retire, always big holes to fill. Ashwin also retired. Those three have been stalwarts. Always difficult. One way of looking at it is, opportunity for someone else," Agarkar said during the squad announcement press conference.
Team India's tour of England begins with the first Test from June 20 onwards at Headingley, Leeds.