Cricket News

35 years after Kapil Dev, this Indian fast bowler is all set to lead the Indian Test side in the fifth Test against England

The league of captains in cricket has been mostly dominated by batsmen. Seeing a fast bowler as the captain of the side is a rarity in cricket. But despite this, we’ve had some great names in the game who were bowlers and went on to captain their respective national sides. Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, and Shaun Pollock are some of the bowlers from the past who took that extra burden of captaincy on their shoulders.

In recent times, Jason Holder and Pat Cummins have led their sides despite being fast bowlers. The Indian team was last captained by a fast bowler 35 years ago by the legendary Kapil Dev. Since then, the Indian team haven’t seen any fast bowler as their captain. But it’s all set to change as we might get to see an Indian speedster Jasprit Bumrah as the captain of the team in the rescheduled fifth test against England.

Now that Rohit Sharma has tested positive for Covid 19, it will be the vice-captain of the series who could take the responsibility of captaincy in his absence. Since Rahul is also out of the squad due to an injury, Bumrah is expected to make his captaincy debut.

Earlier this year, Bumrah was promoted as the vice-captain of the Indian team for the three-match ODI series in South Africa. In the press conference, the seamer had then said that if the opportunity comes, he is ready to take up the India captaincy.

“If given an opportunity, it would be an honour. I don’t think any player would say no. There’s no bigger feeling than that,” Bumrah had said back then.

The covid-outbreak in the camp has put the Indian team on the backfoot as Rohit was the highest run-scorer for India in the series so far. India are leading the series 2-1 and will be looking to seal the series with a draw or win in the fifth Test.