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New Delhi: This English summer will be remembered for its combative Test cricket, but also for Shubman Gill’s emergence as Indian cricket’s heir apparent. His first assignment as Test captain was trial by fire. A team in transition after three stalwarts had retired and the challenge of managing his best bowler’s workload apart, the onus was also on bettering his own individual numbers.
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But Gill will return with great memories. He produced one of the great individual performances by a captain in Test history. His 754 runs in 10 innings, with four centuries, were more than just numbers. They were the backbone of India’s resistance as he lived up to his philosophy for the team – “never give up”. Only Don Bradman, with 810 runs in the 1936-37 Ashes, scored more in a Test series as captain. Among Indian skippers, Gill’s tally is the highest, surpassing names like Virat Kohli and Sunil Gavaskar.
“There were certain things that I wanted to work on as a batsman and it was my goal to be able to be the best batter of the series,” Gill, the Player-of-the-Series, said at the post match presentation. “To be able to accomplish that goal feels very satisfying and rewarding.”
It wasn’t only about the runs, but how they came. In the first Test at Leeds, under pressure after his underwhelming numbers in the format, Gill responded with a commanding century. Next up in Birmingham, his double hundred and hundred were the knockout punches in a seesaw Test. And when India were staring at defeat in Manchester, Gill again ground out a century that helped salvage the draw.
“Each hundred had a different significance,” Gill said in the media conference. “Each has a story and means a lot to me – 25 days of cricket and we played them all, so it’s hard to pick one.”
Gill also became the first Indian captain to score four centuries in a Test series. And at 25 years and 330 days, he is the fourth youngest in Test history to win the Player-of-the-Series award on captaincy debut.
As a leader, it is clear that he has a lot to learn, but in acknowledging that, he looked assured and willing to learn. When asked how he approached pressure situations, he said, “It’s moments like these where you feel like the journey is worth it. More highs and lows and that’s kind of expected in sport, it is a roller-coaster. But that’s how the game and life is. You have to be able to navigate the highs and lows and stay balanced.”
Gill seemed confident as India returned to bowl on the final day of the hard-fought series, but he was quick to credit his bowlers for making his job easier. England needed only 35 runs with four wickets in hand – including the injured Chris Woakes – and the fast bowlers, Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna, responded with a performance for the ages.
Siraj snapped up three wickets for nine runs on an overcast morning, looking like taking a wicket with every delivery bowled with the old ball.
Gill said: “Every ball, every spell that he bowled, he gave his all. Every captain, every team wants a player like him. We are very fortunate to have him in the team.”
“When you have good bowlers like Siraj and Prasidh bowling that spell, captaincy seems pretty easy. The ball is doing all sorts… they’re making the ball talk. We just wanted to make sure (England) were feeling the pressure throughout. Pressure makes everyone do things they don’t want to.”
Gill’s tone in post-match interviews has reflected the composure he had gained under pressure, something that seemed missing in the first half of the series. “That we never give up,” he said when asked to describe his team’s mentality.
In an era when cricket debates often examine the commercial viability of reducing Tests to four-dayers, workload management and the future of the longest format, Gill has also emerged as its advocate, something that he vowed to carry forward after Kohli’s retirement ahead of this series.
“If it were four-day Tests, all five games would have been draws,” he said with a laugh. “Test cricket should be as it is. It’s the most rewarding and satisfying format. You work the hardest to get a win. The best thing is that it always gives you a second chance, which no other format gives.”
There were doubts raised when Gill was appointed captain with questions raised about his batting consistency and ability away from home. However, he has brilliantly regained his red-ball credentials, averaging 75.40 over the series – he averages 41.35 overall – with resolute knocks under pressure. There were moments when he didn’t hesitate to take on the opposition, bringing forth a different aspect to his personality.
This was some way to get started, indeed. But there will be tougher tests ahead, be it overseas tours, dressing room dynamics, lean patches or technical vulnerabilities. But for now, Gill has passed his first leadership exam in flying colours.
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