Shubman Gill presents strong case for captaincy in front of Gautam Gambhir: 'Wouldn't say extra pressure but…'
Shubman Gill enjoyed his time as captain in the Zimbabwe series and asserted that the captaincy brings out the best in him.
Shubman Gill made a strong statement on his first assignment as captain as he led the Indian team to a comprehensive 4-1 series win over Zimbabwe. Team India entered a transition phase after the T20 World Cup triumph with three senior stars - Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja announcing their retirement. The BCCI decided to give the big opportunity to lead the Indian team to Shubman in the absence of other senior stars - Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah.
The talented Indian opener failed to make it to the squad for the T20 World Cup, but the selectors backed him as the future of Indian cricket and named him the captain in the first series after the glorious campaign in the USA and West Indies.
The 24-year-old enjoyed his time as captain in the Zimbabwe series and asserted that the captaincy brings out the best in him.
"It is something that I definitely enjoy," Gill said after leading India to a 4-1 T20I series win in Harare.
"I think it brings out the best in me when I am out there because I look to be involved in the game. It is something that really brings out the side of me which I enjoy being on the field," he added.
He finished the five-match series as the leading run-getter with
Shubman further talked about handling the pressure as captain and called it a fun part of the job.
"There was pressure, I wouldn't say extra pressure but obviously even when you are playing just as a batsman when you don't perform there is a certain kind of pressure that comes along with it," he said. "But I think that's the fun part of it. You kind of feel so many different emotions. Pressure is one of them. And when you get out of that, the satisfaction that you feel is immense," he added.
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The 24-year-old didn't name any particular player whom he idolises as captain but did mention Rohit Sharma as the one which he looks up to.
"You can take qualities from Rohit bhai or even Mahi (MS Dhoni) bhai, Virat (Kohli) bhai, Hardik (Pandya) bhai, all of them," he said. "All of them have great qualities. I have played the most under Rohit bhai, so he is someone who I look up to and really enjoy playing under," he concluded.
It will be interesting to see Shubman's role under new head coach Gautam Gambhir, who will take charge of the team with the Sri Lanka series. It is highly unlikely for Shubman to retain the captaincy role when senior players like KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya return to the side in ODIs and T20Is for the Lanka series.
