Team India's 'Big Three' and the inevitability of succession

Any reflection on Test cricket these days tends to assume that the format is in decline and hovers ‘under threat' by the rise of 20/20 cricket. However, there are many Test match series which always generate intense public interest and have no problems in selling out stadiums - Australia vs South Africa, Australia vs New Zealand, England vs Australia, any series in India but particularly against Pakistan or Australia.

Keen eyes will note that these series mainly involve the ‘elite' test teams and especially Australia, pointing to the need to generate new rivalries between other test playing nations. If such an interest could be forged in all test match series, the format would be in very good shape indeed. This is one reason to be sceptical of splitting the ten test playing nations into two leagues as certain existing rivalries will be lost and the potential to form new ones will be restricted.

More than most sports, Test cricket has always had an air of the protected species about it: heritage-stamped more often than not, even regally ossified and continually at knifepoint from the deeply worrying forces of the new. As far as Test cricket goes, the world has been ending for some time now. Still, you do wonder occasionally. And if excitement about the recently-concluded series in the Caribbean had a slightly fevered edge to it, this might be with good reason, don't you think?

Agree or not, the most commonly mooted murder weapon in the premature demise of Test cricket has been the one-day game, if at all there is. Concern has surrounded the enduring appetite of the watching public for the more attritional charms of the longer form. So far so good! Test cricket has steadily hung in there. Then the last few years have brought the fresh challenge of Twenty20. With it comes a threat to something much more fundamental, even, than spectators. This time it is the players themselves.

Test cricket is currently undergoing a significant generational change, unearthing dozens of elite talents that are set to shine on the international stage in the years to come. As the limited-over formats continue to provide increasingly early exposure for bright youngsters, the immense crop of potential future Test players is being thrust upon the incumbents.

And yet there it goes! Cricket's landscape is paving way for that process too.

The great Australian era has well and truly finished, while India's famous side is experiencing rejuvenation. Pakistan and the West Indies are continually looking to the future, while the England and South African teams are in the latter stages of their current incarnations. Consequently, the next wave of Test players is ready to embrace the spotlight. But who are those players? Who are the standout candidates for the best Test team for players aged 23 years and under?

It has now been three months since India upgraded their rank as the world's No. 1 Test side. Five months since the supposed champions of the Test arena (after Australia lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy) endured a catastrophic humbling at the hands of the team who would quickly take their place at the game's summit.

Also Read: They came, they played, they conquered!

While the merits of India's No. 1 ranking at the time are questionable, given how quickly the tables turned at the Oval, the more pressing issue is whether cricket's most influential force actually holds the desire to consolidate its spot (up there).

Luckily, the subcontinent side are currently blessed with an array of batsmen already on the up as evidenced by the Caribbean series. Let us draw attention to the 'Big Three'.

Virat Kohli. Cheteshwar Pujara. Rohit Sharma.

The 'holy trinity' has given Indian fans joyous moments over the years but how future ready are they is the real question.

In fact, Pujara had played 17 Tests in the 2021-2023 WTC cycle, notching up 928 runs at an average of 32 with a solitary hundred, a record so underwhelming for a team's No. 3. The failure of Pujara to kick on against Australia severely hurt the dressing room as he was perceived to be in fine fettle after his exploits with Sussex in the County Cricket. Even Pujara seemed to know what was approaching.

The knives were out, reams of analysis were printed, experts made a million suggestions and scapegoats were to be discovered and punished over the coming weeks and months. So, who really was our new No. 3? Pujara's failed show with the willow made it mandatory for the bigwigs to search for a solution to that question.

Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma (Pic: AFP)

Sure, if the lessons from this English summer sojourn had been consigned to the dustbin of history, it would have been an opportunity lost again. Perhaps, the board members took it darn seriously. And for the better, I dare say.

Pujara's sacrifice didn't die a painful death, for it gave rise to Yashasvi Jaiswal. The 21-year-old showed in the first Test against the West Indies that he belongs to the highest level, with the southpaw scoring 171 runs on debut and sharing a 229-run partnership with skipper Sharma.

However, now India's headache is not restricted to No. 3 alone as it trickles down to No. 4 as well, a position that belongs to the modern-day great Kohli. Few other batsmen in the last decade have dominated the bowlers with Kohli's arrogance but now just the facade remains as he struggles to build those edifices in Test cricket.

He seemed to have found his range in white ball formats but India needed more of Kohli the Test batsman when they hit the next WTC cycle (2023-25) during the tour to the West Indies next month. Kohli's away average in the same period dipped to 28.43 with no hundred. So, who is our next No. 4 batter?

We can think of Shreyas Iyer, who is currently injured, to step in for Kohli at some stage but the Mumbaikar still has to prove himself as an all-weather batsman. Iyer also will have to sort out his distaste for short-pitched balls angled into his body, often leaving him in tangles but he seems more of a choice as a No.5 batter.

Next up is the skipper himself. Often Rohit's name will not come rushing into your mind during the discussions about India's Test batting greats despite him appearing in 50 matches. But India captain offered a success story in the last WTC segment.

Rohit appeared in 11 Tests, amassing 758 runs at 42.11 with two centuries. His away record too has been significantly better compared to the home numbers during this period, averaging 52.57 as against 36.88. But at 36, can he last till 2025? Is there a chance you're still nodding confidently?

We have Shubman Gill at one end ready to carry on the mantle but what about his partner? India seemed to have unearthed a reasonable long-term option in Mayank Agarwal but he has not played a Test since his second Test against Sri Lanka at Bengaluru last year.

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Abhimanyu Easwaran, a technically sound opener, seemed to have ebbed away for now, and the powers that be will have to oversee Jaiswal's performance in domestic matches. It is imperative too because India have important tours coming up.

Some may favour KL Rahul here. But it must be remembered that he is 30, and by convention, should be in his batting prime for at least a few more years. Though, it is no secret that his Test fortunes have descended of late. But he could step up in place of Rohit, and who knows, his 47-Test experience may save India's skin.

We are scheduled to host England in early 2024 before travelling to Australia and England will return in 2025. The team cannot be left on the crutches as those trips will have a bearing on India's WTC ambitions. Better safe than sorry!