India vs England 5th Test: Jasprit Bumrah To Lead India In Rohit Sharma's Absence, Rishabh Pant Named Vice-Captain

Jasprit Bumrah will lead India in the rescheduled fifth Test against England in Edgbaston, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) informed through an official release on Thursday. The series decider begins in Birmingham on Friday. There was suspense over Rohit Sharma's availability after head coach Rahul Dravid told the media that he was not yet "ruled out" on Wednesday. The announcement that Bumrah will lead in Rohit's absence came just moments ahead of the captain's press conference on the eve of the match. Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant has been named the vice-captain for the match.

Rohit Sharma had tested positive for COVID-19 during India's tour game against Leicestershire.

Bumrah will be the first fast bowler to lead India in a Test match since Kapil Dev and will be the 36th Test captain of India.

"Mr Rohit Sharma, Captain, Indian Cricket Team is ruled out of the rescheduled fifth Test against England to be played from Friday. Rohit underwent a RAT Test on Thursday morning and returned a positive result for COVID-19," the BCCI said in its official release.

"The All-India Senior Selection Committee has named Mr Jasprit Bumrah as captain for the upcoming Test and Mr Rishabh Pant as his deputy," the release further stated.

So far, Bumrah has taken 123 wickets in 29 Tests, including eigth five-wicket hauls.

Virat Kohli-led India had earlier taken a 2-1 lead against England last year before the final Test was called off due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the Indian camp.

India's Test squad: Jasprit Bumrah (Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant (vice-captain) (wk), KS Bharat (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohd Shami, Mohd Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Mayank Agarwal

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Jasprit Bumrah Rishabh Pant India Cricket Team England Cricket Team England vs India, 2022 Cricket