India’s 5-match tour of Australia saw Shubman Gill take charge of the Test team for the first time in his career. With head coach Gautam Gambhir’s coaching stint on the line – after debacles against Australia and New Zealand – he knew that changes needed to be made if he had to keep hold of the job in the longest format.
The departures of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin didn’t make his life easier, or maybe it did, but the challenges were undoubtedly huge, considering that the transition was completed ‘on paper’.
With batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, a battle-hardened domestic stalwart, a part of his coaching setup with the Indian team, Gambhir laid the foundation for a big change in approach towards Test cricket. According to the Indian Express, the message to Shubman Gill, Rishab Pant, and other batters in the team was clear: “to spend more time in the middle”.
In the past, changes were made to the Indian Test team keeping in mind the ‘intent’ factor, something that was spoken a lot during Rahul Dravid’s days as the team’s head coach. The ones who showed greater attacking intent were welcomed. But Gambhir and Kotak wanted a more traditional approach to be adopted in England. The two main men whose approach had to be changed were reportedly captain Shubman Gill and his deputy Rishabh Pant.
The wicket-keeper batter’s ‘stupid, stupid, stupid’ errors on the tour of Australia were known to all. This time, Gambhir wanted him to bring about a change.
“Aap apni khamiyon pe work karte ho (You work on your limitations) … that helps to change a setback into a comeback … I am able to change myself through hard work, focus, and a bit of discipline,” he told the southpaw, as per the paper.
As the series concluded, the improvement in the performances of Gill, Pant, and a few others was there to be seen by all. While both Gill and Pant looked at their absolute best, the Indian team went on to score a whopping 3809 runs in the series, the second highest for any team in Test cricket history.
Even the contribution by the lower order, be it Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, or even Akash Deep, improved significantly, giving Gambhir the confidence that the revamped approach to the traditional format of the game worked.