Former Indian cricketer and two-time World Cup winner Suresh Raina has thrown his prediction as to who could be India's next captain after Rohit Sharma. Former star southpaw overlooked the likes of Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, and Jasprit Bumrah and favoured 24-year-old India's batting sensation Shubman Gill as the next captain of the Indian cricket team. Raina believes that Gill, who rose to prominence with his remarkable performance in the 2018 Under-19 World Cup, has the potential to lead India following Rohit Sharma. Gill, currently leading the Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, assumed captaincy after Hardik Pandya's departure to the Mumbai Indians before the 2024 IPL auction. Having secured three victories for Gujarat Titans in seven matches thus far, Gill is gearing up for another showdown against the Punjab Kings in Mullanpur on Sunday, April 21. He has also scored 263 runs so far in seven matches in the ongoing IPL 2024.
ALSO READ: Mohammad Rizwan breaks Virat Kohli and Babar Azam's record, becomes fastest to 3,000 T20I runs
Suresh Raina's bold prediction on India's future captain
Meanwhile, Suresh Raina shared his bold prediction about Gill's future as the next Indian captain during an appearance on The Lallantop's 'Guest in the Newsroom' show.
“I would say he will be the next Indian captain. Bann sakta hai vo (India captain after Rohit),” Raina said.
Gill has yet to be given the opportunity to lead in any cricket format, and it would require bold decision-making from the team management if he were to be appointed captain in the future. Currently, Hardik holds the position of vice-captain in India's white-ball squad and has led the team in 16 T20Is and three ODIs during Rohit's absence.
During the Test series against England earlier this year, which India won 4-1, Jasprit Bumrah served as Rohit's deputy.
Hardik also assumed leadership once in a Test match against England in 2022 and led a youthful squad in two T20Is against Ireland in August 2023. On the other hand, KL Rahul boasts prior experience in captaining India across all three cricket formats. He has led the team in three Tests, 12 ODIs, and one T20I. Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant was given the captaincy for a five-match T20I series against South Africa in June 2022.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
