Who said what - top 5 expert reactions on Shubman Gill's captaincy post IND vs WI 2025 2nd Test ft. Ravi Shastri

Team India skipper Shubman Gill enjoyed a successful maiden home Test series as captain with his side pulling off a convincing 2-0 win over the West Indies. The hosts dominated from start to finish in both Tests, barring a brief period in the second innings of the second Test, to record their consecutive Test win.

Gill's Test captaincy tenure began in style with India defying all odds to come away with a 2-2 draw in the five-match series in England. Leadership aside, Gill has also batted out of his skin since becoming captain in Tests.

The young right-hander averages a phenomenal 78.83 with five centuries in his seven Tests as captain, including a brilliant 129* in the recently concluded second West Indies Test.

Several former players have weighed in on Shubman Gill's captaincy after his first two Test series at the helm.

As he gets set to lead India for the first time in ODIs in the upcoming Australian tour, let us look at the top five expert reactions to Shubman Gill's captaincy after the West Indies series.

#1 Ravi Shastri

Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri believes Shubman Gill is steely inside despite showcasing calm on the outside. The 26-year-old replaced Rohit Sharma as the Test captain after the latter retired from red-ball cricket before the England tour.

India also appointed Gill as the ODI skipper, replacing the highly successful Rohit Sharma, in a shocker, while announcing the squad for the upcoming Australian tour.

"(It is) a different style of his own. He’s a lot calmer. He’s very composed, but the steel is there inside. He’s been in the side with both these players as captains, Kohli and Rohit Sharma. He has enough respect for them. There’s no question about that. But this is an opportunity to enforce himself on the team. It’ll be interesting. He’ll love this experience," Shastri on Fox Cricket.

Gill has also captained the Gujarat Titans (GT) in the IPL over the last two seasons. He led the franchise to the playoffs in the IPL 2025 season.

#2 Brett Lee

Former Australian pacer Brett Lee was impressed with Shubman Gill's willingness to stand up for his teammates, like the legendary Aussie captains of the past, Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh. Lee also believes it was clear from the recent England series that the Indian players enjoy playing under Gill.

"I’ve been super impressed. And to watch him live, captaining against England recently at Lords when I was there watching, it was clear that his troops love him. His players look up to him. He’s a young captain and an inexperienced captain, but he looks like a very good captain. He’s got the mindset and almost a hardness about him as well. There were a couple of moments at Lord’s where it was not argy-bargy, but there were a few words said, and he stood up for his teammates. And I like that," said Lee (via Fox Cricket).

He added:

"Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting were two leaders who used to do that. They would say, ‘You’re not having a crack at my players, not on my watch.’ And I applaud that. I like that. It is not not going outside the rules and it is about knowing what you can and can’t say, but he stood up for his teammates and I think that’s super important."

Despite falling 1-2 behind in England, India, led by an inspired Shubman Gill, bounced back with a draw in Manchester and a thrilling six-run victory in the series finale at the Oval.

#3 Ian Bishop

Former West Indian pacer Ian Bishop backed Shubman Gill to shine as the Indian captain, thanks to his skillset and temperament. Bishop also believes the presence of seniors like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma should help Gill find his footing in captaincy.

"He’ll be fine. Those two guys (Rohit and Kohli) will help him along the way. He will grow in the job. He’s nowhere near the finished article. People have to give him that chance to grow as a captain — and as a batsman, he will grow as well. He has the temperament and the skill to lead. But the growth in captaincy and tactics is something that will take a couple of seasons to grow into. I’m sure he’ll get help from the two veterans," said Bishop (via India Today).

Gill made his international debut in 2019 under Rohit Sharma and played most of his initial matches across formats under Virat Kohli.

#4 Anil Kumble

Former Indian spinner Anil Kumble praised Shubman Gill for the bold move to enforce the follow-on in the second Test against the West Indies, while also advising the youngster to learn from his mistakes during the contest. After capturing a massive 270-run first innings lead, the hosts asked the West Indies to bat again.

However, the visitors gave Shubman Gill and his men a scare by posting 390 in their second innings and setting up a target of 121.

"We were also happy when he enforced the follow-on. So, just experience and learning will certainly stand him in good stead because you won’t get these kinds of surfaces every day in Test match cricket. So, when you do happen to get this kind of a surface or you do happen to get some stubborn lower-order batters, what are things that one needs to do," said Kumble on JioStar.

He added:

So, these kinds of experiences are only good for him, and if it happens early in your career and you end up winning it, all the better, because if you start losing, then it starts affecting you. So, if you start winning, you need to learn from those winning experiences.

Shubman Gill was criticized for his defensive field placements and questionable bowling changes as the final West Indian pair added 79 runs.

#5 Sanjay Bangar

Former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar was impressed with Shubman Gill's overall captaincy in the West Indian series. The former all-rounder also praised the captain and the team management for opting to play on batter-friendly surfaces in the series.

"I liked two things a lot, which should also be done. He decided to play on such a pitch. The team management, especially the coach and captain, has a slight say as to what sort of surface they would play on. They played on good batting surfaces, due to which the Indian batters got a chance to score five centuries," said Bangar on Star Sports.

He added:

"They will have confidence in their abilities because of that. That proves hugely beneficial in overseas Test matches because you want your sack of runs to be filled when you play overseas Tests as you don't know what sort of conditions you will get in overseas Test matches."

Shubman Gill was one of five centurions from India in the two-Test series against the Caribbean side, the others being Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel, and Ravindra Jadeja.