Irfan Pathan, not one to hold back, has supported Shubman Gill as India’s all-format captain going forward. In a podcast which addressed a host of issues, Pathan made some interesting observations regarding Gill. Answering a question how he evaluated Gill’s performance as a batter in England, Irfan said, “Very impressed. If you see the way he went about his job, you will know how good he was. Shubman Gill the batter actually helped Shubman Gill the captain. As a batter, you just have one job – that is to score runs. But, as a captain, you have two different jobs. And his batting wasn’t impacted by captaincy. Rather, the two things complemented each other. Of course, he will get better, but I have to say he was very impressive in England.
“I have explained in my role as commentator what changes he made in his technique, and why it is helping him and you could see that in England. Not that England did not try things against him. They did. They got the wicketkeeper up at Lord’s, for he plays in front of the wicket. And he got dismissed as well. But then, he worked it out and came back and scored runs yet again in Manchester – scored a 100. That’s what tells you that as a batter, he was in a very good space.”
When asked how he saw Gill’s elevation to vice-captaincy in the T20 format and if he saw him as India’s all-format captain in future, Irfan concurred.
“See, Indian cricket is run in a particular way,” he said. “And it will be run in a particular way. It is not what people outside of it think. Not the media or the fans. It is much like the engine of the train. The compartments will all be guided by how the engine runs. The players need to know who the engine is. The signal needs to be sent to them. They need to be made aware that Shubman Gill is the leader. And I agree with this thought process.
“I don’t think three captains for three different formats works, and it isn’t a long-term solution. Gill as all-format captain over a period of time is the right way to go about it. Yes, he will improve and get better. And he isn’t captaining only from the England series. He has captained in the IPL and done well. Now, he is India’s red-ball captain and did well in England. I don’t see it as a problem if he is given captaincy across formats in the future.”
Pathan spoke about a host of issues, including Jasprit Bumrah’s workload, Mohammed Siraj and why he is a role model, his own coaching aspirations going forward, the future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the ODI format and if he sees either at the 2027 World Cup for India.
Full podcast on RevSportz at 12 noon.
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