'Virat Kohli would have shown the opposition...': Ex-India star criticizes Shubman Gill's captaincy with blunt 'personality' verdict

The Shubman Gill-led Indian team recorded a five-wicket defeat against England in the first Test of the five-match series at Headingley. It was a tough start for the 25-year-old who made his debut as Test captain with the match in Leeds. Though he did score a fantastic century in India's first innings to help them post a mammoth total of 471, he got dismissed cheaply for just eight runs on the second occasion.

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar wasn't a fan of Gill's captaincy during the first Test and compared it to that of Virat Kohli, who announced his retirement from the longest format earlier this year in May. The 36-year-old had a highly successful stint as the Men in Blue's Test skipper, recording 40 wins in 68 matches.

Manjrekar slammed Gill's 'defensive' approach in first Test

Manjrekar feels that Gill was too defensive against England and this ended up costing the visitors big time. He added that Kohli would have tried and put immense pressure on the opposing batters, leading to them giving away their wickets.

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"Overcast conditions, I know the ball wasn't doing too much, but they pre-empted the English approach and had a far too defensive field. I hate to bring Virat Kohli as a comparison because it's unfair on the young man, but you can just imagine Virat Kohli in that situation," Manjrekar said on Star Sports.

"Whether they would have got wickets or not, Kohli would have shown the opposition that he's trying to get them out. Gill is not that kind of personality, nor that kind of captain. But maybe don't go so defensive, pre-empting things," he added.

The second Test of the five-match series between England and India is set to begin from July 2 at Edgbaston. The match will be highly important for the Men in Blue as if they end up going behind 2-0, then it will become a humongous task for them to make a comeback into the series.

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Notably, India have never recorded a victory against England in red-ball cricket at Edgbaston. Their best result has been a draw and that too came back in 1986. It is safe to say that it will be a monumental feat if Shubman Gill & Co. manage to defeat the Three Lions at the venue in the second Test.