Litmus test awaits next gen stars

After the twin retirement, India will have a new-look side with youngsters looking to cement their places

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN @Chennai

JUST how fast the night changes, eh?

Deep inside the bowels of The Oval less than two years ago, Rohit Sharma, smarting from a big defeat at the hands of Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) final, had hinted at changes. "... there are a lot of players who are doing really well in our domestic cricket," he had said in a terse press conference. "It's about finding them."

Two years later, as the next WTC cycle comes to an end, Sharma's less than satisfactory tenure as red-ball skipper has ended. Not just his. Out of the XI that featured in that final, four of the first five are either out of favour (Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara) or retired (Sharma and Virat Kohli).

Ravindra Jadeja, the lone spinning all-rounder in that game, is still a starter but his skills are waning.

Out of the wicket-keeper and bowlers, it will take a lot of injuries to see Srikar Bharat as he is probably fourth or fifth choice, while Umesh Yadav may not play in India whites again. There's a cloud over Mohammed Shami post his return from injury while Shardul Thakur is a doubtful starter even on the best of the days.

In fact, the only thing you can say with any certainty is that out of the XI, only two—Shubman Gill and Mohammed Siraj—are automatic starters in the first Test against England in Leeds from June 20.