Shubman Gill was compared to three Indian cricket legends by Sunil Gavaskar |Courtesy - IANS/AP
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Sunil Gavaskar hailed Shubman Gill
- Gill has made an impressive start to captaincy of the Indian Team
- Only three captains have won a Test series in England
Shubman Gill's record-breaking start to his tenure as the captain of the Indian Test team earned him the ultimate praise as Sunil Gavsakar compared him to three of the greatest captains and cricketers that India has produced and labelled him as a 'amalgam' of the three.
For those unversed, Gill was appointed captain after Rohit Sharma's retirement and has made a notable impact with the bat. The 25-year-old has already made over 600 runs in the series, which is the most by any Indian player and captain in a series on English soil.
In India's record-breaking 336-run victory at Edgbaston, Gill won the Player of the Match (POTM) award for a display that will be remembered for a long time. In the first innings, the Indian captain made 269 runs before following up with a knock of 161 in the second outings. His tally of 430 runs is the second-most by a player.
Gavaskar stated that Gill's performance reminded him of Ajit Wadekar, Kapil Dev, and Rahul Dravid, the three Indian captains to win a Test series in England.
"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," wrote Gavaskar in a column on 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," Gavaskar added.
Gill has a realistic chance of breaking Gavaskar's record for the most runs in a bilateral Test series for India (774), which has stood strong for 54 years.
The victory at Edgbaston saw Gill break Gavaskar's record and become the youngest Indian captain to win an away Test match.
