NEW DELHI: With stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma stepping away from Tests, expectations were understandably cautious around how a young Indian side led by Shubman Gill would handle the challenge of a five-match series in England.
Only eight members of the squad had previously played Tests in England. Adding to the uncertainty was India’s pre-decided plan to field Jasprit Bumrah in just three of the five Tests - a move that raised questions about the bowling unit’s ability to take 20 wickets consistently.
Compounding the pressure was India’s recent form, with Test series defeats at home to New Zealand and away in Australia. But after 25 days of compelling cricket, India staged a spirited comeback to draw the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series 2-2. Former India wicketkeeper-batter Deep Dasgupta spoke exclusively to IANS about the drawn series, Gill’s roles as batter and captain, and what lies ahead for a team clearly in transition.
Q. How do you assess India’s comeback from 2-1 down after the Lord’s Test to level the series?
A. It’s obviously a team which is going through a transition and, and what I make of it is, one is that India's Test cricket future in good hands. Obviously there were these huge questions when Virat, Rohit, and Ashwin retired.
Then there was a new captain in Gill and there were questions in terms of where is this team going? Plus, touring England is one of the most toughest assignments in cricket - not just for India, but for any team and country. So to come off it by levelling the series, it's just unbelievable, undoubtedly.
Q. Gill clearly had a tour to remember with the bat in Tests. How do you analyse his performances on this tour?
A. Gill the batter was just phenomenal - 754 runs, that's kind of unheard of. Not too many people have scored more than that in a series. So, 754 runs and the way he batted, he looked solid. Apart from that second innings at Lord’s, he never looked like he was getting out. So, apart from that, it just never looked like he would get out to anything.
That solidity is what you want while playing at number four for the Indian team, which I always thought was Gill’s eventual position in red ball cricket. So, him batting at number four, scoring so many runs and getting a hundred in the first innings itself, that helps as a captain.
When you are captaining for the first time, you go out there and do really well in your skill set, and have more confidence when you are talking in dressing room, or in a huddle talking to the players as a captain. You definitely have a lot more authority when you are doing well as an individual, and one could see that helped.