A day after being appointed India’s new Test skipper, Shubman Gill highlighted the importance of leading by example as he is set to begin his tenure as captain with a crucial five-Test series in England starting on June 20, also the beginning of the new World Test Championship cycle.

Set to take over the reins of a side undergoing a transition phase, following the retirements of three stalwarts — Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin, Gill underlined the importance of understanding his team-mates to get the best out of them.

Advertisement

“As a captain, a leader should be able to know when to step in but also when to give space to the players, because everyone has kind of had a different life and grown up differently. Everyone has a different personality, so a good leader should always be able to know what makes his players to be able to have the best performance or the best outcome,” Gill told BCCI.tv.

“That is always exciting to be able to have those conversations with the players, to be able to know them on a deeper level than just cricket, because then you’re really able to know what can get the best out of them,” he added.

However, more than the textbook stuff, Gill has his task cut out as he will first need to establish himself in the side, after being dropped from the last two Tests of India’s tour to Australia late last year. Now handed the reins of the side, the 25-year-old becomes India’s youngest full-time Test skipper since Sachin Tendulkar led the side at the age of 23 in 1996. Like Tendulkar, who took the reins of the side after a series of underwhelming results, Gill assumed command of the team in trying times.

India suffered their first home series loss in 12 years towards the end of 2024 against New Zealand, followed by a comprehensive defeat in the Border-Gavaskar series DownUnder despite a positive start. Given this, the side failed to make it to the ICC World Test Championship 2025 Final, the first time it has not been able to do so since the inception of the tournament.

As he seeks to rebuild India’s Test fortunes, Gill will be tasked to address multiple challenges, and the most important one of those would be to solve the No.4 conundrum as it is for the first time in the last three decades, India will need to find a suitable match for the crucial batting spot in Tests.

First, Sachin Tendulkar and then Virat Kohli thrived at the position, scoring a cumulative 21,056 Test runs for India with 70 tons during their time at No. 4. With the latter’s recent retirement, India will need another batter to raise his hand and make the key position their own for the coming years.

Several contenders line up, but it remains to be seen which way the team management goes. There’s a possibility that skipper Gill takes over as number four, a role similar to Kohli, holding the side’s middle-order defence while having the strokeplay to turn the game around.

Rishabh Pant, who scored a sensational 146 in his last outing in England, has been slotted down a bit lower at number five or six in Test cricket, but given Kohli’s departure, can be asked to fill in. The same goes for KL Rahul; should India move to a left-handed opening combination featuring Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudarshan.

Karun Nair, who’s making a comeback to the Test squad after seven years, can also slot in the role, having featured in other middle-order roles before.

Filling in Ashwin’s boots

Ravichandran Ashwin’s international retirement during the Australia series left a void that will take time to be filled. The star off-spinner’s retirement also broke the magical pairing with Ravindra Jadeja, with the duo claiming 587 Test wickets while playing together.

Ashwin and Jadeja played a crucial role in India’s 12-year unbeaten run in Tests at home. However, with Ashwin’s departure and the fact that Jadeja is on the wrong side of his 30s means that India will be on the lookout for new leaders in their spin setup. Importantly, Ashwin’s handy lower order batting abilities also added depth to India’s lower order.

Kuldeep Yadav (56 Test wickets) and Washington Sundar (25 wickets) will have the immediate burden of carrying India’s spin fortunes along with Jadeja. Other spinners, who haven’t been named in the squad for the England series, but can be in contention for future assignments, are all-rounder Axar Patel (55 Test scalps), domestic icon Jayant Yadav, R Sai Kishore or even white-ball specialist Ravi Bishnoi.

Lack of experience

Beyond the statistics, Ashwin, Kohli and Rohit have been central to shaping India’s Test fortunes since the early 2010s. Their wealth of experience across diverse conditions will be hard to replace.

Unlike the gradual transition between 2008 and 2013 when legends like Anil Kumble (2008), Sourav Ganguly (2008), Rahul Dravid (2012), VVS Laxman (2012) and Sachin Tendulkar (2013) exited the stage over a span of years, this current shift has been abrupt. India now finds itself without the combined experience of 296 Test matches, lost virtually overnight with the retirement of all three stalwarts within the space of a single series.

Void in leadership group

The retirements of the three stalwarts have also left a void in the leadership group, and one would now expect the likes of pace spearhead Jasprit Burmah, vice captain Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, and Mohammed Siraj to form that group alongside Gill.

Unlike the early 2000s, when India’s leadership primarily consisted of senior batters (Sachin, Sourav, Rahul and VVS Laxman) along with Anil Kumble, over the recent years, the bowlers have had a greater say, so one can expect Bumrah to play a crucial role in the think tank, with other senior bowlers chipping in as well.

Regaining lost confidence, especially at home

The tour of England will be followed by a couple of Test series at home, agains the West Indies and later with South Africa. Generally the favourites at home, the Men in Blue was served a wakeup call after being hammered 3-0 by New Zealand in their own backyard. India’s recent years have seen them struggle against spin, including losses to Australia (2017, 2023) and England (2021) on turning tracks at home.

But this was the first-time that they had been whitewashed at home (in a series of three or more games) with Ajaz Patel (15 wickets) and Mitchell Santner (13 wickets) playing a leading role in New Zealand’s triumph.

Here, Gill’s role will be crucial as he’ll be expected to lead the resurgence of the side’s fortunes at home later this year.