This is India's first Test series after the retirement of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Shubman Gill will set foot on English soil, this time as India’s skipper for the ENG vs IND series. England are set to host India in a five-match Test series starting June 20. The hosts have announced their playing XI 48 hours before the first ball, whereas India’s Vice-Captain Rishabh Pant, in a press conference, has implied that Gill will be taking up the No.4 spot. Who takes up the No.3 spot in the Indian batting order is still anyone’s guess.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir has not had a very easy job. Apart from India’s ICC Champions Trophy win earlier this year in March, the former left-handed batter has struggled when it comes to the red-ball game. After India’s whitewash at home by the hands of New Zealand, coupled with an intense tour Down Under, Gambhir will have a lot to prove.
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The intensity of the role that a head coach plays on the side can never be measured. How much planning goes outside the field of play, the captain is the king on the field. With a young captain now at the helm, many believe that the team might walk on Gambhir’s vision. However, former Indian cricketer WV Raman put forth an interesting take on the matter. Raman stated that whatever is said and done, the captain should have the intimate responsibility. He also mentioned that a coach is always someone who should stay in the background.
“It’s not all about the coach all the time. Yes, we all know Gambhir is a good tactician. He’s also a very intense man. And he’s also got the best interests of the team at heart. So, we’ve got to try and forget the fact that everything should be related to the coach. So, a coach is always somebody who’s got to stay in the background. We should allow the coach to do his job,” Raman said in an interview with The Times of India.
Going a notch further, the former India player resembled the current team scenario with that of the 2007 Indian side, which lifted the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup under the leadership of MS Dhoni. He affirmed his belief in the fact that there are no expectations from Gill and Co. for this tour, and the only way from here is upwards.
“As far as this particular team is concerned, even though there’s a lot of apprehension about how the series will pan out, I for one think this team is in the same situation as Dhoni’s team when they embarked on the first T20 World Cup. There are no expectations. So, that is a big advantage for this side. That’s a real big advantage for this side. And they have everything to gain. The only way is up”, he concluded.
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