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Ravi Shastri criticized Shubman Gill’s captaincy amidst the strong position of England in the Manchester Test. He questioned Washington Sundar late bowling and many strategic mistakes. Shastri said that Gill can become a better captain than experience.
Delhi: In the Manchester Test, the England team appeared in a strong position when they scored 544/7 runs in the first innings and took a lead of 186 runs over India. In this match, a decision of captain Shubman Gill surprised everyone. He called Washington Sundar after 68 overs for bowling, while Sundar took 4 wickets in the second innings of the previous match (Lord’s Test).
As soon as Sundar was given the ball, he dismissed Oli Pope and Harry Brook. This led to the question of why Gill did not try him before.
Ravi Shastri unhappy with Shubman
Former India coach Ravi Shastri strongly criticized Gill’s captaincy. He said that it was a wrong decision to give a ball to a bowler like Sundar for so long.
Shastri said on Sky Sports, “Sundar took four wickets in the last match, and then you bowl him after 67 or 69 overs. What message will that player get from this? He should have bowled within 30-35 overs. And then he took two wickets as soon as he came.”
He further said that many more mistakes were seen in the captaincy. According to Shastri, Mohammad Siraj should have got a new ball but Gill gave it to Kamboj, who is playing his first Test. This gave England relief in the beginning.
Shastri further said, “The bouncer’s strategy was also adopted delayed one day. It should have been tried on the first day so that pressure can be made against England.”
An example of Virat Kohli
Ravi Shastri also said that Gill can become a better captain with experience. He described the role of team management as important and said that people like Gautam Gambhir and Morne Morkel can help Gill.
The former Indian coach said, “When Virat got the captaincy, he was more aggressive. We had to calm him sometimes, especially at the time of field placeing. Every session cannot get five wickets. Sometimes we have to play the situation.”
He also said that senior bowlers in the team like Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah should come forward and help Gill. They have experience and they can set the field by themselves.
In this Test, questions have been raised on India’s strategy. Now it has to be seen what changes Gill makes in the upcoming matches.
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(Tagstotranslate) Eng vs Ind (T) Eng vs Ind 2025 (T) Indian National Cricket Team (T) Ravi Shastri (T) Shubman Gill (T) Virat Kohli