Legendary Sunil Gavaskar feels Shubman Gill has an opportunity to become one of India’s most successful Test captains. Gill was named as India’s new Test skipper by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel on Saturday in a press conference on Saturday.
The youngster doesn’t have a lot of experience under his belt but Gavaskar backed him to deliver the goods as a leader. Gill will take over the Test captaincy baton from Rohit Sharma, who recently announced his retirement from the red-ball version.
At 25 years and 258 days, Gill becomes the fifth-youngest cricketer to captain India in Tests, behind Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi (21 years, 77 days), Sachin Tendulkar (23 years, 169 days), Kapil Dev (24 years, 48 days), and Ravi Shastri (25 years, 229 days).
Speaking to India Today, Gavaskar said, “It’s a good selection because we’re looking to the future. Yes, you might argue that he has only played 30-odd Tests, but several Indian captains had even fewer matches under their belts before being handed the reins – and many went on to enjoy long tenures.
“When you look at Shubman Gill as a cricketer, you see the seriousness with which he approaches the game. He holds this format very close to his heart. So, there is every reason to believe he could become one of India’s most successful Test captains.”
The former Indian opener urged the experts to be patient with Gill and said it would be unfair to judge the youngster based on one series.
“Definitely, yes. Nobody is an instant success. You have to give youngsters enough opportunities to succeed. After giving them four or five matches in a row, you can then decide whether they are good enough or not. Likewise with captains – you can’t judge them on one series. You have to give them a whole season leading India, and only then look at how they’ve coped with the responsibility.”
The Test series between India and England will commence on June 20 in Headingly, Leeds.
