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Following India's five-wicket defeat in the first Test match against England, where the hosts successfully chased down a target of 371 runs in the fourth innings, Shubman Gill has found himself in the centre of criticism.
Shubman Gill didn't quite have that on-field aura of Rohit and Virat Kohli: Nasser Hussain
Former England captain Nasser Hussain drew comparisons between India's newly appointed Test captain and his predecessors Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, observing that Gill "didn't quite have the on-field aura" of the more experienced players. Hussain further elaborated on his observation, noting that Gill appeared to be more reactive in his captaincy approach rather than proactively dictating terms on the field.
"I saw someone finding his way. He (Gill) didn't quite have that on-field aura of Rohit and Virat Kohli. I thought he followed the ball a lot and was reactive rather than proactive. When Rohit and Kohli captained, you looked down and you immediately knew who was in charge, but when I looked down in this game, I saw two or three captains, captaincy by committee," Hussain told Sky Sports.
Nasser Hussain is also concerned by India's lower-order batting collapse.
"The collapses concern me. In India they have had spin-bowling all-rounders that are magnificent - Ravi Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel - but in England they are still looking for a seam-bowling all-rounder who can bat. If they keep going 6-31 and 7-41 this could be a quick series," said the 57-year-old who played 96 Tests between 1990 and 2004," he added.
When other cricket pundits were criticising Gill, Mohammad Kaif voiced his support for the 25-year-old. Contrasting his leadership with that of England's captain, Ben Stokes, Kaif asserted that Gill captained better in the first Test match held at Headingley, Leeds. Gill had demonstrated his batting prowess by scoring a brilliant 147 in the first innings, a feat that made him the fifth Indian skipper to achieve a century on his captaincy debut.
Kaif has defended the young Indian captain specifically commending Gill for his effective rotation of the premier fast bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, during the match.
"As a young captain, Gill did brilliantly by giving Bumrah 4-4 overs and rotating him well. He led better than Ben Stokes. Well done, thumbs up. Helpless captain because he was playing with one and a half bowlers. One is Bumrah, and the remaining half is Jadeja. There was no support from Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, or Shardul. You can’t win the Test match with 1.5 bowlers. He did captaincy very well and looked good to me. He used his resources well,” he added," Kaif said on his YouTube channel.
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