Big honour for me to lead such legends: Shubman Gill

The five-Test tour of England, earlier in the year, marked a significant change of guard in India’s Test cricket with Shubman Gill taking over from Rohit Sharma. On Sunday, when the 26-year-old Gill steps into the Optus Stadium in Perth for the first of the three-match ODI series against Australia, it will mark the beginning of another new phase in Indian cricket, as he leads the pack for the first time in white-ball cricket with two former captains, Virat Kohli and Rohit, still part of the squad.

For the youngster, the ODI series marks a fresh challenge of leading the legends he once idolised.

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While Gill may not yet have the global stature of Kohli or Rohit, that could soon change, with him holding the top leadership roles in both Tests and ODIs. He, along with Australia’s Mitchell Marsh, features prominently on promotional banners around Perth for the series, symbolic of a generational shift in both camps.

For India, it represents a transition as they start planning for the 2027 World Cup, a campaign aimed at ending a 16-year wait. Gill has so far appeared calm and confident on tour, unfazed by the expectations that come with leading two of Indian cricket’s biggest names.

Having started his Test captaincy stint with a 2-2 draw against England, where Gill led from the front, scoring 754 runs, the Punjab right-hander will look to do an encore in coloured outfit too. The difference now, though, is that he leads a side still featuring two iconic cricketers, and their presence could both be an honour and a learning curve for the young leader.

“These are the kind of players I used to idolise when I was growing up,” Gill said of Kohli and Rohit. “It’s a big honour for me to lead such legends. I’m sure there’ll be many moments in this series where I’ll learn from them. If I get into a difficult situation, I wouldn’t shy away from taking advice.”

Despite speculation about the dynamics of India’s leadership transition, Gill was quick to brush aside any talk of friction.

“The narrative outside is different. There’s nothing like that between us, things are just as they were before,” he said.

“Rohit bhai is very helpful. I often ask him what he would have done in a particular situation. I have a great equation with both Virat bhai and Rohit bhai, they never hesitate to share their knowledge.”

The three-match series will offer the first real glimpse of Gill’s approach to limited-overs leadership, his balance between aggression and composure, and how he manages a team featuring the stalwarts. His early days as Test skipper have already shown that the added responsibility elevates his game, with five centuries in just 13 innings.

“I like it when I have additional responsibility. The pressure brings out my best,” Gill said.

“But when I bat, I try to think as a batsman, not as a captain. That helps me make clearer decisions for the team.”

While the Australian public will celebrate Kohli and Rohit’s likely final ODI appearances DownUnder, it’s also a series that signals the dawn of a new phase.

“Definitely, very exciting,” Gill said of his first ODI assignment as captain.

“It’s big shoes for me to fill, carrying forward the legacy that Virat bhai and Rohit bhai have built. The way they communicated with the team and inspired confidence is something I want to emulate. I want my players to feel as secure as I did under them,” he added.