Former Indian cricketer and current commentator Mohammad Kaif has come to Shubman Gill's defeat despite India lost to England in the first Test at Headingley, Leeds. According to Kaif, Gill's captaincy in the first Test at Headingley was superior to that of England's captain Ben Stokes. Gill also had a commendable performance with the bat, scoring a brilliant 147 in the first innings, becoming the fifth Indian captain to mark their debut with a century. Despite this individual success, India faced a setback when England successfully chased a substantial target of 371 runs on the fifth day, winning the match by five wickets.
Mohammad Kaif backs Shubman Gill amidst criticism
While several cricket experts have criticized Gill's tactics during the match, Mohammad Kaif has publicly backed the young Indian skipper, specifically praising his decisions regarding the rotation of the prominent bowler, Jasprit Bumrah.
"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.
Kaif further lauded Gill's performance with the bat, emphasizing the importance of scoring runs in English conditions and lauding him for successfully passing this challenge.
“I will praise him a lot because it was a big Test for him in this series. It was important for him to score in England. Everyone said he doesn’t know how to play in England, [you] made him captain, but hasn’t scored runs. But he passed the Test with the bat, scored a century, excellent batting. Apart from captaincy, he showed he can deliver with the bat," Kaif further stated.
Following the disappointing defeat in the first Test, captain Gill now faces a herculean task in regrouping his team and preparing them for the second Test match, which is slated to get underway on July 2 at Edgbaston in Birmingham. Historically, Edgbaston has not been a favourable ground for India, as they have never won a Test match at this venue, having suffered defeats in seven out of the eight matches played there.