India and Australia will renew their rivalry and square off in a five-match Test series, starting November 22. Captain Rohit Sharma is likely to miss the first Test of the series due to personal reasons. Jasprit Bumrah will lead India in a Test match for the second time if Rohit is absent. Virat Kohli isn't part of the leadership group in any format now.
Virat, who last captained India in a Test match against South Africa in 2022, made his Test captaincy debut against Australia in December 2014. Virat got to know about his captaincy debut a month in advance as MS Dhoni was 'rested' for the series opener.
Dhoni was suffering from a thumb injury and to keep him fit for the last three Tests, the BCCI decided to rest him for the first game of the series. "Dhoni is suffering from a right thumb injury. He is on the right track. It has been further decided to rest him for one more Test, so that everything is fine. It was suggested by his physiotherapist and doctors and after that this decision was taken. It is a right thumb injury," Sanjay Patel, the former BCCI secretary, said back then.
Virat made a dream start to his captaincy career and scored centuries in both innings. India lost the first game of the series by just 48 runs. Dhoni made his return for the 2nd and 3rd Tests.
After the end of the 3rd Test, Dhoni made a shocking announcement and he retired from Test cricket. Virat led India in the fourth Test for the first time as the full-time captain.
Virat-led India created history on their next tour to the country as they clinched the 2018/19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. They had regained the trophy from Australia in the home series in 2017. India emulated their heroics Down Under in 2020/21 under Ajinkya Rahane's leadership.