On Saturday, May 24, Shubman Gill was named India’s next Test captain, making him the 37th player to hold the position and represent the nation in the red-ball format. Next month, India will travel to England to play the Three Lions in a five-match Test series, marking the start of his maiden assignment.
Shubman is the captain of the 18-man team announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), with wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant serving as his deputy. The Punjab batsman succeeded Rohit Sharma as the fifth youngest player to captain the Indian squad in the game’s longest format.
Following the right-handed batter’s selection, former India speedster Yograj Singh praised him and added that his father and the great Yuvraj Singh deserve all the praise for his outstanding exploits.
“His father and Yuvraj Singh deserve praise for Shubman Gill’s performance.
India Today reported Yograj as adding, “Yuvraj Singh’s guidance will play and has played an essential role in that if Shubman Gill has become the captain today and will stay for a long time.”
Many consider Shubman Gill to be the country’s next batting sensation, having trained under his father’s tutelage since he was a small boy. Along with numerous other gifted Punjabi cricket players, he also trained with Yuvraj during the COVID-19 lockout in 2020.
In 32 Test matches, the Fazilka native has amassed 1,893 runs at an average of 35.06. His performances as a hitter in the red-ball format have drawn criticism from certain analysts and fans. In South Africa and England, two important overseas circumstances, his average dangerously falls below 20.00.
Given that India enters the series with a young team, Shubman will need to take the lead in the UK. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin have all recently announced their retirements, and Mohammed Shami has not been selected because of fitness concerns. Where Shubman bats in the series will be interesting to watch. He has been batting at number three lately, but since Kohli is leaving red-ball cricket, he may drop even lower to the storied number four spot.