As India begins the search for a new Test captain following Rohit Sharma's retirement, former England skipper Michael Vaughan has thrown his weight behind a familiar name -- Virat Kohli.
With a challenging tour of England on the horizon, Vaughan believes Kohli's experience makes him the ideal choice to lead India once again.
While the names of Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant are being floated as frontrunners, Vaughan has urged the selectors to go back to Kohli for stability and experience.
'I would give the captaincy to Virat for the Test series in England... Shubman Gill can be his VC for the tour,' Vaughan posted on X.
Kohli, who led India in Tests from 2014 to 2022, remains the country's most successful captain in the format with 40 wins and 11 draws in 68 matches.
However, conflicting reports have emerged regarding Kohli's future in Test cricket. On May 10, it was revealed that the star batter had informed the BCCI of his intention to retire from the longest format of the game ahead of the England series.
A senior BCCI official requested Kohli to reconsider, given that India are already set to enter the World Test Championship cycle without two of their most experienced batters -- Rohit and now potentially Kohli.
If Kohli follows through with his reported plan to step away, the onus of anchoring the batting unit would fall on younger talents like Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
The team for the five Test England series is expected to be announced before the end of May, along with the new Test captain.
Kohli has featured in 17 Tests in England, including two World Test Championship finals, scoring 1,096 runs at an average of 33.21.