Shubman Gill, India’s Test captain, claimed that the squad is willing to sacrifice batting depth in order to add more bowlers to the lineup, even if it meant fielding only six specialist hitters and four tailenders. India is ready to face England in a five-match Test series, with the first match starting on Friday at Headingley.
The newly chosen captain noted a departure in tactics from India’s last overseas tour of Australia, when the team went with a deeper batting lineup that comprised two all-rounders, Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy, in addition to the core batting unit.
“Yes, absolutely. You cannot win a Test match without taking 20 wickets, regardless of how many runs you score. So that has been one of our big debate points, you know, how we are going to take 20 wickets, and there may be a case where we only go with six batsmen and see a bowling all-rounder and three to four fast bowlers or proper bowlers,” Gill remarked,
Shubman Gill admitted that the team has been inspired by their seniors’ techniques for winning matches in any condition during the last decade.
He also underlined the need of sustaining a positive team environment not only for the next Test series, but also for the entire World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.
“Based on the blueprint that we received from our elders over the last 5-10 years, we believe we can win anywhere, and we will strive to maintain that same confidence and blueprint. And, as previously stated, if your team has a positive environment, players feel secure and confident, and they understand their roles. So we want to foster such environment in the team. And if we achieve in creating that climate, I believe our Test series and WTC cycle will be really successful,” Gill said.
Gill insisted on focussing on his function as a batter rather than his captaincy responsibilities. He said that this strategy will assist to relieve pressure and allow him to focus on crushing the opposition throughout the series.
“After Virat bhai retired, me and GG bhai [Gambhir] had a discussion about it and we were both clear that he wanted me to be at number four and I was also clear that I also wanted to be at that number,” Gill told Reuters.
“To be honest, when I go out there and bat, I simply want to play as a batsman and not think of myself as the captain of the game because I believe that puts too much pressure on me. Whenever I walk out there, I want to play like a batsman and dominate the opposition, being the best batsman in the series. And that’s what I’m trying to look at,” he said.
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