When the Indian selectors announce the cricket team that will tour England, for the first time in a decade, it will not feature two of the most successful players, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Thus begins the uncertain future of Indian cricket.

Last week, the great batsman Kohli and captain Sharma announced their retirement from Test cricket. That means the Indian team going to England will be like new. And Shuvman Gill will be a strong candidate for the captaincy. Just last year, veteran bowler Ravichandran Ashwin also retired. In this case, the Indian team going to England will be without a backbone. 

At that time, India was the No. 1 Test team. India are playing a five-Test series starting June 20 in England. Its first match will be at Headingley and it will prove to be the first important step in India's rebuilding process. Cricket journalist Ajay Menon says, Gill may be the new captain. But his performance abroad is not good.' 

Gill has played 32 Tests for India so far and has scored 1,893 runs at an average of 35.05. It includes five centuries. The number of Tests he has played in foreign soil is 13 and his average is only 29.50. Maybe, Gill will open the innings.

He will be accompanied there by 23-year-old player Yashasvi Jaiswal. After that, Shreyas Iyer, who is a specialist in hard hitting, will be replaced and he is considered to be Kohli's alternative. Although it is considered impossible to fill Kohli's place, Sarfraz Khan, Rajat Patidar and Dhruv Jurel are also considered as alternatives. Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is also seen as a future captain. He himself is going through a bad rhythm.

Not only that, but his captaincy for Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League is considered pale. Sharma's vice-captain on the tour of Australia was Jasprit Bumrah and he also led in Tests. India was victorious in one of them. He is also a strong candidate for the captaincy. He has only recently returned to the field after recovering from an injury.

He was injured during the Test in Sydney in January. The five-Test series in England will last for six weeks. That means India will also have to rest their bowlers between a couple of Tests to avoid overburdening them. So Bumrah might not be a good choice for captain.

Journalist Menon considers Kohli's Test retirement as a turning point in Indian cricket. But whatever he believes, how strong Indian cricket is now, some substitute players are bound to emerge.

There are still some senior players in the team, like Mohammad Sami and Ravindra Jadeja. New players are also coming forward, like Jaiswal, Gill, Pant. Perhaps the famous Krishna and Mohammad Siraj are equally good. Washington Sundar would also be a good option to replace Ashwin,” says Menon.