Since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy from November last year, Shubman Gill , the new superstar of Indian cricket, has played quite literally non-stop, missing just one series. If the challenge of leading India in Tests wasn’t enough, Shubman Gill has now been tasked with the job of captaining the ODI side too. In T20Is, he’s India’s vice-captain at present.
In the leadership group of Team India, Shubman Gill has a very important role to play. No doubt, the role is challenging and involves the risk of mental fatigue, especially for someone like Shubman Gill, who also shoulders a huge responsibility in the team’s batting unit.
Shubman Gill coming of age in cricket as a leader
After the five Tests against Australia that concluded in January, the 26-year-old Shubman Gill took part in a three-match ODI series at home against England in February, then immediately flew out to Dubai for the Champions Trophy and returned home to lead Gujarat Titans in the IPL without a break. He then boarded the flight to England to lead India in a gruelling five-Test series, which was followed by the Asia Cup in the UAE, where he was named Suryakumar Yadav’s deputy.
Before he could even catch a breath, Gill returned home for the ongoing two-Test series against the West Indies, and within days of this rubber finishing, the Punjabi heads to Australia, where he will lead in a three-match ODI series as the new captain. That will be followed by a 5-match T20I series. Next on the agenda is the full-fledged series against South Africa at home — two Tests, three ODIs and 5T20Is starting November 14 — where, as the captain in two formats and deputy in the shortest one, he’s expected to play all of it.
Once the South Africa assignment gets done on December 19, he’s certain to feature in three ODIs and five T20Is against New Zealand at home beginning January 11. That will be followed by the T20 World Cup at home and Sri Lanka. Add the responsibility of leadership, and it’s physically, mentally and emotionally taxing. Shubman Gill, who has missed just the T20I series against England in January because he was not in the scheme of things then, admitted the schedule is mentally taxing but is ready for the challenge.
Shubman Gill positively speaks about winning mentality ahead of the 2nd Test vs West Indies
Shubman Gill said Thursday that his biggest opponent could be “mental fatigue” after the India Test captain recently took over charge of the 50-over side. Speaking ahead of Friday’s second Test against the West Indies in New Delhi, Shubman Gill conceded that it was a challenge to play all three international formats, but that was what drove him.
“Physically most of the time I feel fine, but sometimes there is mental fatigue because when you are constantly playing,” Shubman Gill told reporters.
“There is obviously a certain expectation that I have from myself.”
India lead the two-match series 1-0 after they hammered the visitors by an innings and 140 runs inside three days in the first Test.
Immediately after play ended on day three, Gill was named to succeed Rohit Sharma as ODI captain, adding to the 26-year-old’s workload.
“I think that is the challenge about being able to play all the formats for India,” said Gill.
“And I want to play and succeed in all the formats for the country, and win ICC titles.”
Shubman Gill, who made his Test debut in December 2020, took over as Test skipper in May from Rohit. He was India’s leading scorer in the drawn five-Test series in England with 754 runs. He was also vice-captain of the Asia Cup-winning T20 team last month.Turning to the West Indies, Gill said there would be no complacency as India aim to wrap up the series against a team who are a pale shadow of the side that once ruled world cricket. Gill said his team is guarded against complacency in the second and final Test against the West Indies starting Friday.
“I don’t think your intensity drops down depending on the opposition. It doesn’t matter who we are playing, whether West Indies, Bangladesh, Australia, or England. We want to be able to play at our own intensity, and we want to win.”
Shubman Gill will lead India for the first time in ODIs when the Men in Blue take on Australia in the opening match of the three-game series in Perth on Sunday, October 19. Before the ODIs in Australia, Shubman Gill will captain India in the second and final match of a two-Test series in Delhi, starting October 10.
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