Shubman Gill succeeded Rohit Sharma as the captain of India in Test cricket following the latter's sudden retirement from the format last month. This decision came as a surprise to many as Gill had never captained the Men in Blue before in red-ball cricket while on the other hand, candidates like KL Rahul and Jasprit Bumrah had done so.
India haven't won a Test series on English soil since 2007
The England assignment can be quite pressurizing for Gill as not only has he never captained the Indian team before in the format, but also because the Men in Blue haven't recorded a Test series triumph on English soil since 2007.
Former India cricketer Yograj Singh believes that Gill will need to lead the team from the front just like how Kapil Dev captained India in the 1983 World Cup and took them to a famous triumph. He further went on to predict that the Men in Blue will go on to win the five-match Test series over England.
"A few days ago, I was talking to Yuvraj Singh about Abhishek (Sharma) and Shubman Gill. Yuvraj said he would have to lead from the front. As Shubman Gill goes out to bat, he has to stay at the crease for the maximum time. When a captain leads from the front, and scores run. It is important for Shubman to set a target of 100, 200 or 300. He has to lead from the front. He also has to take everyone forward together, just like Kapil Dev did in the 1983 World Cup. I believe India will win the series," Yograj told ANI.
Meanwhile, Gill recently had a successful IPL 2025 campaign as the captain of the Gujarat Titans. He lead the team to the playoffs and ended up as the league's fourth-highest and the side's second-highest scorer with 650 runs under his belt in 15 matches. The Gujarat-based franchise's journey in the tournament was eventually brought to an end by Mumbai Indians in the eliminator.
India's playing XI for first Test: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Rishabh Pant(w), Karun Nair, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.
England's playing XI for first Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes(c), Jamie Smith(w), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.