Former India skipper explained why he was not happy with Shubman Gill as India Test captain observing three key areas.
Former India opener Sanjay Manjrekar admitted that he wasn’t convinced by the idea of naming Shubman Gill as India’s new Test captain. He explicitly said that Jasprit Bumrah could have been the better choice because of his impactful performances worldwide. Manjrekar’s revelation came following Gill’s statement century on the opening day of the Headingley Test against England on June 20.
“I was against it. Let’s be very honest, because I thought Bumrah would have been the better choice and the logical choice, without really thinking too much about the future, looking into the crystal ball. So I don’t think it was the right decision,” Manjrekar said on JioHotstar.
Why Sanjay Manjrekar Preferred Jasprit Bumrah
“But was Shubman Gill going to be a failure as captain? No,” Manjrekar said, explaining his perspective. “As captain, temperamentally, we knew that he wouldn’t carry the anxiety of being the captain and affect his pattern. But he was still a kind of evolving material when it came to overseas cricket. Whether the added pressure of captaincy could be too much for a guy who has not quite made a mark in overseas cricket.”
Gill averaged just 27 in overseas Tests. That is as low as it gets for any batter but team management always believed in his potential. The Mumbaikar said Gill proved his critics, including him wrong with a sublime century on Friday at Headingley. Before this Test, the Indian skipper was averaging just 15 on England soil in three Tests, including two World Test Championship (WTC) finals.
However, pace spearhead Bumrah reportedly himself denied the Test captaincy following the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The pacer informed the selectors that his body would not allow him to play all five Tests against England. Hence, he would not be able to take up leadership roles at least in Test cricket. During the squad announcement, chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed that Bumrah will play only three Tests due to workload management. This led the selectors to appoint the 25-year-old Gill as the India’s new Test captain.
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The Indian skipper silenced his critics with a stunning unbeaten 127-run knock with the help of 16 fours and a six. With this hundred, he became the fifth Indian to hit a century on captaincy debut after Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar and Virat Kohli.
Gill looked aggressive from the very beginning of his innings. He notched up his fifty in just 56 balls, his fastest in Test cricket history. This is the first 50-plus score outside Asia since his 91-run knock in the famous 2021 Gabba win.
It forced Manjrekar to admit that his tactical strength and how he addressed the concerns over his overseas performances. Former India batter observed that Gill got rid of three technical areas that prevented him from getting overseas hundreds. He noted that the pitch was good, the bowling was friendly, but once he got rid of those technical issues.
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