The five-match series will kick off on June 20.
India is set to witness a new dawn in Tests after the recent retirements of former captains Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. A young Indian squad will take on England for a five-match Test series. The team will be led by the newly appointed skipper Shubman Gill, while another youngster, Rishabh Pant, has been named as the vice-captain.
Former England player Monty Panesar has issued a huge warning to the new Indian squad. According to him, the lack of experience in India’s batting lineup following the Test retirements of Kohli and Rohit may hand them a collapse while facing a strong England squad.
“England will benefit from the fact that Virat and Rohit are not playing. Their experience could have been used for India. But they are inexperienced. What happens with inexperience? How will India play against England? We know how England can play. It’s possible that India will collapse,” he said to ANI.
However, the spinner who comes from Indian-Sikh descent, has predicted Gill’s leadership future for the upcoming series. The 43-year-old has backed the youngster to be a good skipper and reflect responsibility throughout his performance.
“I think Shubman Gill will be a good captain. He will bat well with responsibility,” stated Panesar.
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Notably, the 25-year-old is yet to prove his abilities in overseas conditions. The opener has scored 1,893 runs including five tons in the format. However, 1,177 runs and four centuries out of his nearly 2,000-run tally, have come in the Indian soil. Gill scored his only century outside India against Bangladesh in 2022. Especially, his stats in England show only 88 runs in three matches at a poor average of 14.66.
The exciting five-match clash between the two sides will kick off on June 20 in Headingley. The match will be followed by four fixtures which will take place on Edgbaston, Lord’s, Old Trafford and Kennington Oval, respectively.
Team India is currently playing an intra-squad match with India A behind closed doors as the final preparation ahead of the long overseas tour. Previously, they also clashed against the England Lions for two unofficial four-day Tests. However, both matches ended in a draw.
After a thrashing 3-0 home defeat against New Zealand and a 3-1 Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series loss in Australia, India will look to make a comeback in this upcoming tie against England. Skipper Gill will also look to improve his overseas batting stats to start his leadership stint on a high.
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