Cricket news : India appoint Rohit Sharma as Test captain

Rohit Sharma will captain the Indian men's Test side in the upcoming 2-Test series with Sri Lanka, it was announced on Saturday.

Rohit replaces Virat Kohli, who stepped down in January.

The 34 year-old batter is now the India skipper across all formats - he took over the role in the 'white ball' sides last year, when Kohli resigned from the T20 captaincy and was then sacked as the 50-over team leader.

The first Test against Sri Lanka begins on 4th March in Mohali, with the second following in Bengaluru on 12th March.

Kohli remains part of the squad but has been rested from short form matches.

It is understood that Rohit will retain the Test captaincy beyond the Sri Lanka series.