Shubman Gill says he wants to lead by example

A new era begins in Indian cricket as the newly-appointed Shubman Gill leads the team on the tour to England, featuring five Test matches

Hyderabad: A new era begins in Indian cricket as the newly-appointed Shubman Gill leads the team on the tour to England, featuring five Test matches.

A daunting task for sure, in the wake of the retirement of two of the finest batters — Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli — only recently.

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But the 25-year-old Gill, who has played 32 Tests scoring 1,893 runs at an average of 34.05, with five centuries and seven fifties, says he is ready for the challenge and wants to lead by example.

In the pre-tour media briefing in Mumbai on Thursday, Gill, who made his Test debut in 2020, said the first time he found out, he was overwhelmed.

“But having said that, it’s a big responsibility. Looking forward to this challenge. We have some decisions to make on the batting position. We play an intra-squad match and then have a 10-day camp,” the Indian captain said.

“I don’t have a particular style in mind. You play and you keep developing these things. I like to communicate with the players. I would try to get them comfortable with their strengths and weaknesses. The players should feel secure — only then will they perform well,” Gill said.

On Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retiring from Test cricket, Gill felt the pressure comes with every tour.

“The two big players have served us for so long. It is not easy to fill that space. But that’s not any added burden. We’re all used to that by now,” he said.

On his own batting slot, Gill reiterated that he didn’t have a specific style in mind.

“You play and you keep developing these things. I like to communicate with the players. I would try to get them comfortable with their strengths and weaknesses. The players should feel secure — only then will they perform well,” he explained.

On England adopting the Bazball strategy, Gill said they play a certain way and that it would be exciting for his team. “It is a great challenge. If we are proactive with our plans, it would put them under pressure,” he said.

Reflecting on pace ace Jasprit Bumrah, Gill said the team had 10 bowlers. “Whenever Jasprit Bumrah plays for us it is great, but we have enough mix to cover up in his absence,” he added.

For his part, Indian team head coach Gautam Gambhir said they were always in a good space and that everyone wanted to do well.

“It does not really matter if it’s a clean slate. We have players who want to go out and express themselves,” he said.

“We have not taken the call on which Tests Bumrah will play. It will depend on the results of the matches as well,” the head coach said about the great fast bowler.

On Karun Nair’s comeback, Gambhir said it showed the importance of domestic cricket. “If someone has scored heaps of runs in domestic cricket, he should be in the team. And we will not judge him by a couple of performances,” the head coach said.

“First of all, I am always under pressure. Because being the coach, you want the results. It does not change with winning or losing,” Gambhir said about himself.