Gill draws on last England series for inspiration
The newly appointed India skipper touched upon how conversations with senior players have helped shape the team’s mindset for the five-match series in England.
India take on England in a five-Test contest in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, beginning Friday at Headingley, and India's red-ball skipper Shubman Gill officially confirmed his position in the batting lineup at the pre-match presser.
The 25-year-old takes over the No. 4 position, following the retirement of Virat Kohli, who occupied that slot for the majority of his Test career for India, and the right-hand batter opened up on conversations leading to the decision.
"The summer has been a little bit different to the other English summers. It's been a little bit dry, so I was just waiting to see the wicket one last time to see the final combinations and deciding on that," said Gill at the pre-match press conference.
“After Virat Bhai retired, me and GG Bhai [Gautam Gambhir] had a discussion about it. And we were both clear that he wanted me to bat at number four, and I was also clear that I also wanted to bat at that number."
Gill will be debuting as India's No. 4 in the contest at Leeds. In his 32 Tests so far, Gill has 16 outings as an opener and as many outings as India's No. 3.
Gill further spoke about the dynamic between him and vice-captain Rishabh Pant, who shared insights into the teams preparations. Their chemistry, built over years of playing together, is set to define a young Indian leadership unit as India aim for a first series win on English soil since 2007.
"We have played, me and Rishabh, we have played a lot of cricket together. And our mindset and our thinking is sort of aligned and our vision is sort of aligned."
"We want to create an environment in the team where everyone feels secure. And I think, I personally believe that everyone's best performances come when they're feeling the most secure and feeling validated.
“And that's the kind of environment that we want to create on the team."
Gill revealed valuable conversations during the IPL with Rohit Sharma, who called it time in the longest format last month, and Kohli, and that he will be looking to take inspiration from India's 4-1 win at home against England in his captaincy debut.
"I met both of them in the IPL and they told me about their experiences, especially here in England and some of the challenges that we might face here in England.
“I think the Test Series that we played against England in India was one of the best series that I have been part of. And even in that Test Series, not many of our senior players were available in every match. And how we went about that series was the way that I think the series is also going to be.
“If you look at the series scorecard, I think it was about 4-1. But the number wasn't really justified how tough that series was for us. And if we are able to replicate that, I think that would be the key for us."
Gill went on to acknowledged that England’s approach to Test cricket under Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum has shifted the dynamics of red-ball cricket.
"They have been playing a very exciting brand of cricket. They have been wanting to get results.
"I think that's what their approach has been from what we know when we played against them in India."
The opening Test of the five-match series will also mark the beginning of the next ICC World Test Championship cycle for both teams.