Leadership void to middle-order gaps: Team India face tough test under Gill's captaincy

A day after being appointed India's new Test skipper, Shubman Gill highlighted the importance of leading by example as he is set to begin his tenure as captain with a crucial five-Test series in England starting on June 20, also the beginning of the new World Test Championship cycle.

- TRIDIB BAPARNASH

Set to take over the reins of a side undergoing a transition phase, following the retirements of three stalwarts—Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin, Gill underlined the importance of understanding his teammates to get the best out of them.

"As a captain, a leader should be able to know when to step in but also when to give space to the players, because everyone has kind of had a different life and grown up differently. Everyone has a different personality, so a good leader should always be able to know what makes his players to be able to have the best performance or the best outcome," Gill told BCCI.tv. "That is always exciting to be able to have those conversations with the players, to be able to know them on a deeper level than just cricket, because then you're really able to know what can get the best out of them."

However, more than the textbook stuff, Gill has his task cut out as he will first need to establish himself in the side, after being dropped from the last two Tests of India's tour to Australia late last year.

Now handed the reins of the side, the 25-year-old becomes India's youngest full-time Test skipper since Sachin Tendulkar led the side at the age of 23 in 1996. Like Tendulkar, who took the reins of the side after a series of underwhelming results, Gill assumed command of the team in trying times. India suffered their first home series loss in 12 years towards the end of 2024 against New Zealand, followed by a comprehensive defeat in the Border-Gavaskar series Down Under despite a positive start. Given this, the side failed to make it to the ICC World Test Championship 2025 Final, the first time it has not been able to do so since the inception of the tournament.