"He's enjoying the fact that he is a captain" - Former wicket-keeper's massive claim on Shubman Gill after Day 4 of ENG vs IND 2025 4th Test

Former India wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik remarked that Shubman Gill is enjoying the responsibility brought upon by the captaincy role in his maiden series against England. The young skipper has had a tricky start to his leadership career, but the added duty has led to a massive spike in his batting as he inches closer to the 700-run mark in the five-match series.

Coming on the back of a string of poor scores, including one in the first innings of the fourth Test at Old Trafford, Gill had a massive role to play with the score reading 0-2 in the second innings. England had their tails up after amassing 669 in the first innings, claiming a lead of 311 runs in the process, and looked to make further inroads on Day 4.

However, the Indian skipper stood tall for the side when required, responding with his fourth fifty of the series. The ace batter endured a tricky start against the new ball pacers, but counter-attacked to perfection, before settling down as the day progressed.

Gill finished unbeaten on 78 runs off 167 deliveries to keep India alive in the contest ahead of the final day. Dinesh Karthik stated that although he disagreed with several of the decision-making in the Test, he lauded Gill for relishing the challenge and stepping up.

"I think he's enjoying the fact that he is a captain because he is able to control the narrative in a lot of ways. Did he get his captaincy right? I don't think so. There are areas where he will definitely look back and say, 'I could have done this better'. Starting from the playing XI he chose, to the kind of bowling changes he made," Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

Gill has scored 697 runs in eight innings in the series so far at an average of 99.57. The skipper batted out 62 overs with KL Rahul, two straight sessions to steer India to 174-2 in the second innings, reducing the trail to 137 runs.

"The most peaceful place is actually out in the middle" - Michael Vaughan senses more pressure for Shubman Gill in the dressing room

Former England captain Michael Vaughan opined that the best thing for Shubman Gill in this particular situation is to bat out in the middle as he will be bombarded with questions regarding strategy and selection in the dressing room. The Indian skipper's tactics have been scrutinised by fans and media alike, stemming from fatigue and a questionable team combination.

"Gill and KL Rahul's technique has been incredible throughout. There was one drive from Shubman Gill that went quite wide and Dawson should have taken that, and that really was the only time I looked down and thought that's a technical fault that the partnership produced," Vaughan said on Cricbuzz.

"He's (Gill) a human being. The Indian selection, this week, they got it wrong. Sometimes as a captain, you can sleep on that every night and go, 'Oh, I've got it wrong, I've got the wrong team out there'. As a captain, if you are sitting in the dressing room, you've got people asking you questions or the coach speaking to you. The most peaceful place is actually out in the middle," he added.

England need eight more wickets in a bid to force a result and potentially seal the series with an unassailable lead in the five-match affair. Team India, on the other hand, will most likely have to bat out the entire day to keep the series alive.