India’s ODI and Test captain Shubman Gill on Saturday said the presence of senior batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli makes leadership at the highest level far more manageable, underlining how their experience and calmness provide a safety net in pressure situations as India prepare for a three-match ODI series against New Zealand.
Speaking at the pre-match news conference in Vadodara ahead of the series opener, Gill explained why having Rohit and Kohli in the dressing room is such a valuable advantage for a younger leader.
“The two names that you have taken — one is one of the greatest openers of all time, Rohit Sharma, and Virat bhai is one of the greatest ODI batters ever. So definitely, when you have these two in your team, it makes your life easier,” Gill said.
“Whenever you are in a tough situation, they have been in those kinds of situations and conditions many times in their life, so you can always go to them and see how they are thinking and what they would do, and that piece of information is very valuable for any captain,” he added.
Gill, who was left out of next month’s T20 World Cup squad, said he respects the selectors’ decision and remains focused on giving his best whenever the opportunity arises.
The 26-year-old has led India in the longer formats but was not considered for the upcoming World T20 tournament despite having played 36 T20Is, scoring 869 runs at an average of 28.03 with a strike rate of 138.59.
“My belief is that in my life, I am right where I have to be and whatever things are written in my destiny, no one can take those things from me,” Gill told reporters ahead of the first ODI against New Zealand.
“Obviously as a player, you have a belief that if you play in the World Cup, you will win (it for) your team, (and) you will win (it for) your country.
“Having said that, I respect the selectors’ decision and (I am) wishing the T20 team all the very best and I really hope that they win the World Cup for us.”
Asked whether his exclusion could have an adverse mental impact, Gill stressed the importance of staying in the present.
“Being a sportsperson, it's all about being in the present, the more (in the) present you are, even when you are on the field, more you are not thinking about what's going to happen, or what has happened in the previous moment, it gives you more chances of succeeding,” he said.
“I try to look at what I need to do now and what is important. The more we can be in the present moment, it makes our life more simpler, and if you make your life more simpler, it's a much peaceful and a happier space that you would want to be in,” he added.
The New Zealand series is only Gill’s second assignment since becoming India’s full-time ODI captain.
In November, he missed the second Test against South Africa and the subsequent ODI series due to a neck injury sustained on the second day of the opening Test in Kolkata.
“(It is) never easy, especially whenever you get injured, watching your team play and you feel like you're missing out on all those games, especially when you've just been named the captain,” Gill said.
“There are so many things that you want to do and when you sit out there, it's definitely very frustrating,” he added.
Gill also dismissed suggestions that senior players had opted for an “easier format” to continue representing India.
“The Indian cricket team hasn’t won a World Cup since 2011, so if it was that (easy), we would be winning (the) World Cup every second year (edition),” he said.
“It’s easy to say (that) but I don't think any format is easy. It requires a lot of resilience, a lot of persistence, and a lot of determination to be able to win big ICC tournaments,” he added.
On the longer format, Gill revealed he has been particularly insistent in his discussions with the BCCI about the need for more preparation time ahead of Test series.
“One of the suggestions that I was very keen on is, if you would see in the last two Test series that we played, we didn't have that much time to prepare,” he said.
“It's not easy playing in India, and playing another match in a different country on the fourth day, especially when you are travelling on long tours,” he added.
Gill said this stance would not have changed even if India had beaten South Africa, as he believes the Test side did not get enough preparation time before the two home series this season.
“Even if we would have won the series against South Africa, it still wouldn't have made that much of a difference, because we know we need to prepare well to be able to win Test matches all over the world,” he said.
“Preparation for me is really big, and I didn't think that we had that much time to prepare when we came back from Australia, or even after the Asia Cup when we played the West Indies series. It’s important to at least have some bit of preparation especially changing from white-ball format to red-ball. I think we'll take some action and we'll keep it in mind to be able to prepare well before the start of any red-ball series," he added.
