India Test captain Shubman Gill faced a challenging start to his leadership career as England secured a five-wicket victory in the series opener at Headingley, despite India’s dominant position for most of the match. Head coach Gautam Gambhir called for patience with the young captain while praising his performance, particularly his century in the first innings.India seemed poised for their first victory at Headingley since 2002 during day four, but a second tail-end collapse and England’s successful chase turned the tide against them.The match marked the beginning of a new era for India without veteran players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, with Gill becoming India’s youngest Test captain.“Look, first Test match, obviously, there are nerves. It’s a great honour. As he’s already mentioned, captaining the Test side, not many people get that opportunity, and he was phenomenal. More importantly, I think the way he batted in the first inning, obviously, I’m sure he would have had his own nerves, being the captain for the first time, and then getting a hundred,” Gambhir said at the post-match press conference.
“So, everything that it takes for him to be a successful captain, we’ve got to just give him time. We’re still very early days, and he’s only the captain for the first time. I’m sure he’s going to get better. And these are tough places to captain. It’s like pushing someone into the deep sea, and I’m sure he’s going to come out as a proper professional,” Gambhir added.Gill showcased his batting prowess in the first innings, forming a substantial 195-run partnership with vice-captain Rishabh Pant. His impressive innings of 147 runs from 227 balls ended when he hit the ball to Josh Tongue at deep square while attempting to reach his 150.Quiz: Who’s that IPL player?In the second innings, Gill managed only 8 runs from 16 balls before being bowled.India’s batting performance was bolstered by centuries from KL Rahul and Pant, helping the team reach a total of 364.Chasing a target of 371 runs, England’s victory was secured through Ben Duckett’s aggressive 149 and Joe Root’s unbeaten 53, achieving their second-highest chase in Test cricket history.Despite the defeat, Gambhir remained supportive of Gill’s leadership potential, emphasizing the need for time and patience as the young captain develops in his role.
