Times View

Times View

It is indeed time that the selectors split the captaincy of the Indian team in the three formats. On current form and past track record, there is a very strong case for retaining Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the ODI captain and a reasonably good one for continuing with him in the T20 format.

In Test matches, on the other hand, three successive series defeats against top teams, the last at home, suggests that MSD is not really up to the job.

If the choice is between Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, we would suggest going with Kohli. Not only is he younger and hence likely to be around for much longer, Gambhir is at the moment not looking entirely convincing as a Test batsmen, which could well weigh his captaincy down.

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Voices calling for a change of guard have grown after India suffered a humiliating 1-2 defeat

Voices calling for a change of guard have grown after India suffered a humiliating 1-2 defeat -- the first loss to England at home in 28 years. This followed disastrous tours of England and Australia -- both lost 0-4 -- which means India has lost 10 of the last 12 Tests played against quality opposition.

While Dhoni's place in the side is hardly in question, cricket bosses are looking at a future scenario in the context of a new look India squad. Of the two candidates, Gambhir has displayed leadership skills as a stand-in skipper in ODIs and also in the IPL, but Kohli has been in far superior form this year.

In the past, Gambhir has led India in six one-day internationals, winning all of them, and also captained Kolkata Knight Riders to victory in IPL-5. He is seen as an inspirational skipper who leads from the front, but his current patchy form may go against him.

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