"All three were the coolest skippers" - Indian legend's stunning claim on Shubman Gill ahead of 4th ENG vs IND 2025 Test

England v India - 3rd Rothesay Test Match: Day Two - Source: Getty
Shubman Gill has impressed in his first three matches as India's Test captain [Credit: Getty]

Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar paid current skipper Shubman Gill the highest compliment by calling him a blend of the three former Indian captains to win a Test series in England. The legendary batter believes that Gill, with his batting and captaincy, in the second Test of the ongoing England series, exhibited qualities similar to those of Ajit Wadekar, Kapil Dev, and Rahul Dravid.

Ad

Captaining India for the first time in Tests in the ongoing series, Gill led the side to a memorable 336-run win in the second Test at Edgbaston. The 25-year-old also broke several batting records, including the highest Test score by an Indian in England and an Indian captain overall, with his 269 in the first innings.

Gill's 161 in the second innings took his match tally to 430 runs - the second highest in Test history behind Graham Gooch.

Ad

Talking about Gill in his maiden captaincy stint in Tests, Gavaskar wrote in his column for the Mid-Day:

"It might be pertinent to note that India have won a Test series in England only thrice. In 1971 under Ajit Wadekar, in 1986 under Kapil Dev and in 2007 under Rahul Dravid. All three were the coolest skippers one could ever hope for. The laconic style of Wadekar, the rip roaring yet controlled style of Kapil and the intense and thoughtful method of Dravid."
Ad

He added:

"Not once did these three ever get excited whatever the situation and that calm certainty was infectious. Shubman Gill in Birmingham looked like an amalgam of these three. Intense and laconic while scoring a double century and a century, rip roaring as well as thoughtful as his bowlers ran through the England batting in both the innings."
Ad

Unfortunately for Gill, his fortunes faded in the third Test at Lord's, as he scored 22 runs across the two innings as India lost a thrilling encounter by 22 runs.

"Have had the rub of the blue at crucial moments" - Sunil Gavaskar on ENG-IND 2025 series

Ad

Sunil Gavaskar believes England are ahead 2-1 in the five-Test series against India only because of the rub of the green going their way at the crucial moments. The hosts chased down 371 in the series opener at Leeds and defended 193 in the third Test at Lord's despite being behind the eight-ball for long periods in both matches.

"That England are ahead 2-1 is quite simply because they, and not India, have had the rub of the blue at crucial moments in the matches. Hopefully, that will change in the next two Test matches and this young and talented Indian team will end up winning both the games and with it the series," wrote Gavaskar (via the aforementioned source).
Ad

He concluded:

"Talented this Indian team definitely is, but because it is short on experience, they have not been able to recognise the moments where they could have turned things around and tightened the screws. Their effort level has been splendid, particularly from the fast bowlers who have bowled their hearts out trying to get the stubborn partnerships broken and get their team ahead."

Trailing 1-2 in the series, Team India are in must-win territory heading into the fourth Test at Manchester, starting July 23.

Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news

Quick Links

Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
down arrow icon
More
bell-icon Manage notifications