Shubman Gill attended his first press conference today as India’s new Test captain. Head coach Gautam Gambhir was also present for the media interaction ahead of the five-match Test series in England. Following the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from the longest format of the game, Gill is under pressure to take up more than one responsibility. One of the many conundrums is who will replace Kohli at the No.4 spot, a position that India didn’t have to rethink for over a decade.
While talking to the journalists, the new Test skipper shared the plans and how the execution would be carried out. Gill spoke concerning filling the No.4 spot.
He said, “It’s a big responsibility and we are looking forward to the great challenge. We have a 10-day camp in London, one intra-squad game, and we still have time to decide the batting order.”
India, having a huge talent pool, has a plethora of options for the top order. The No.4 spot is also being competed for. Some of the options for Gill apart from himself are KL Rahul, Karun Nair, and Dhruv Jurel.
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Virat Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket has left a significant void in India’s batting line-up. As his likely successor, the Punjab batter would embrace the added responsibility.
Recently, Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting suggested that Gill should bat at No.4 in Tests. However, the 25-year-old has never played at that position in his 32-match Test career. Notably, 53.8% (1,019) of his 1,893 Test runs have come at the No.3 spot. Furthermore, his record in England has been awful, collecting only 88 runs across three matches.
India’s likely option at No.4 is Karun Nair, who made headlines with a double century in the first unofficial Test between the England Lions and India A.
While KL Rahul’s experience could be valuable at No.4, the Karnataka batter is best suited to his original role as opener alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal. This would allow Gill to retain his preferred position at No.3, making minimal changes in the top order during the crucial away series.
England will meet India at Headingley, Leeds, on June 20 for the first Test.
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