India are lucky they have many options: Kevin Pietersen names who should take over as Test captain

Former England captain Kevin Pietersen has named India's next Test captain after Virat Kohli stepped down as the captain of the red-ball format on January 15. The 33-year-old Kohli surprised one and all with his decision, only a day after India lost the three-match Test series versus South Africa, in the rainbow nation.

Kohli shared the news with one and all and tweeted saying, "Everything has to come to a halt at some stage and for me as Test captain of India, it’s now. It’s been 7 years of hard work, toil and relentless perseverance every day to take the team in the right direction. I’ve done the job with absolute honesty and left nothing out there. Everything has to come to a halt at some stage and for me as Test Captain of India, it’s now."

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Since then, many former cricketers and experts of the game have shared their suggestions regarding who can take over from Kohli in whites. Ex-England cricketer Pietersen also opened up in this regard and feels India have plenty of options to choose from. 

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“You (India) are so lucky that you have so many options for the captain. I will probably stick with Rohit Sharma. He is a great leader, I love the authority he commands. He makes fabulous decisions and we’ve seen them with Mumbai Indians, he has won so many titles with them. More importantly, I am really looking forward to how Rahul Dravid is with that team – can he do it with the youngsters, can he do it with the big guys,” Pietersen was quoted as saying by India Today.

The national selectors have a tough decision to make in order to choose India's next captain in the purest format. Under Kohli, India dominated at home, played the inaugural WTC final, won a Test series in Australia and have an unassailable 2-1 lead over England in the incomplete five Tests in the United Kingdom, held in mid-2021.

The contenders for the top job are Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pan and Jasprit Bumrah.