"Should call Rahane and have a chat" - Former India batter's stunning advice to Shubman Gill ahead of ENG vs IND Tests 2025
Former India batter Mohammad Kaif has said that newly-appointed Test captain Shubman Gill has a chance to become a hero while leading a relatively young outfit in England amid transition. The ace batter was named Rohit Sharma's successor as the selection committee named an 18-man squad for the five-match Test series, beginning on June 20.
Shubman Gill will not have the services of several senior Indian players, including Virat Kohli, while spearhead Jasprit Bumrah's availability for all five matches is also highly unlikely. The new captain has to make use of the handful of senior members on the side, along with a batch of newcomers and some candidates making their comeback.
Mohammad Kaif likened the circumstances to those one Team India faced during the 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar series. On that occasion, Ajinkya Rahane was tasked with leading a young Indian side with Virat Kohli departing after the first Test, which was followed by an injury crisis.
The veteran batter had to manage with emerging players like Shubman Gill, Mohammad Siraj, T Natarajan, Navdeep Saini, and more, to overcome a 0-1 deficit, and record a historic series triumph.
Kaif noted that Gill should seek advice from the former stand-in captain as to how to lead an inexperienced side.
"I think this is a chance for Gill to become a hero. He is getting an opportunity to lead a young team in England, and in such cases sometimes the expectations are a bit low. That is something that Gill can use to his benefit, because when Rahane was leading India in Australia, before the Gabba Test everyone had said that it is a very young team," Kaif said in a video posted on X.
"But, Rahane's young team defeated Australia in Australia. So, Gill should probably call Rahane and have a chat, because Rahane had done some brilliant work in that tour with a young side. Gill has to do something like that as well," he added.
Gill and Rahane had recently come face-to-face when the Gujarat Titans (GT) had faced the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens on April 21.
The current Indian team has senior figures like Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, and KL Rahul, who have an equally massive role to play in guiding Shubman Gill as he takes on a mammoth task.
"We're all confident that he's the guy to take us forward" - Chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Shubman Gill's appointment as Test captain
Shubman Gill was strongly linked to the captaincy role along with Jasprit Bumrah. However, the speedster's workload concerns have not made him a suitable candidate for the role. Ultimately, Shubman Gill was named captain, with Rishabh Pant named as vice-captain.
"It's a big job; it's a big transition. Two of your big players are retiring. But we're all confident that he's the guy to take us forward and hopefully, in time, that proves it. He's a terrific player and we're all very hopeful," Agarkar said during the squad announcement press conference in Mumbai on May 24 (via NDTV).
The 19-man squad will depart for England after the culmination of the IPL 2025. As part of the preparations, the Indian squad will face India A in an intra-squad fixture from June 13 onwards.