With the appointment of Rohit Sharma as the captain of the Indian ODI and T20I team and Team India taking the split captaincy route, Indian cricket is evidently in the middle of a leadership transition. Even in Test cricket, Rohit had replaced Ajinyka Rahane as the vice-captain for the upcoming tour to South Africa before he was ruled out of the series because of a hamstring injury. 

However, with both Virat and Rohit ageing, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), selectors, and even fans will surely have one eye on moulding a younger captain for the role and preparing him to take over the position in the future. 

Former Indian coach Ravi Shastri put trust in his successor Rahul Dravid to do the job efficiently while naming talented batters KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer as possible contenders to lead the Indian cricket team in the future. 

Talking to Indian Express, Shastri said, “Rahul Dravid knows his job. All I want to say to him is enjoy. KL Rahul is there, Shreyas Iyer has good leading qualities in the future especially in white-ball cricket.”

Rahul has led the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for two seasons in 2020 and 2021. While he has left the franchise ahead of the 2022 season of the cash-rich league, he is widely speculated to be picked up by one of two new franchises as a pre-auction pick and lead them. 

Recently, he was named as the vice-captain of the Indian Test team for the South Africa series after Rohit was ruled off the red-ball assignment of the tour. He was also the vice-captain of the Indian side for last month’s home series against New Zealand and is expected to be permanently named as Rohit’s deputy in white-ball cricket. 

Meanwhile, Iyer led Delhi Capitals (DC) from 2018 to 2020 before losing the position to Rishabh Pant after missing the first leg of IPl 2021 due to a shoulder injury. He is also seen as a leading contender to lead either of the two new teams or one of the existing teams in search of a captain next season.