New Indian captain, Shubman Gill, is going to be in the spotlight on the current tour of England. How arduous the task of winning a Test series in England is going to be for the young, inexperienced captain can be gauged from the fact that on the 19 previous tours of England, only three captains have managed to win a series. It all started with Ajit Wadekar in 1971, followed by Kapil Dev in 1986 and Rahul Dravid in 2007. However, the good thing about this young team under Gill is that they do not carry the burden of the past and always look to be positive and show ample enthusiasm, which was on display when they had a prolonged training session at the Headingley ground, where the first Test will commence on Friday.

Talking to the media after the practice session, vice-captain Rishabh Pant said that the team wanted to focus on the present. “As a young team under a young captain, we are looking at it as an opportunity to express ourselves and not thinking of the past, but focusing on playing good cricket. In the absence of seniors [Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma], the young players are taking it as a chance to develop as players further and play good, positive cricket.”  

On his relations with Gill, Pant said that he has always had good vibes with him and, having a comfortable off-field relationship, will have a positive impact on the field. “I have had good camaraderie with Gill, we gel well off the field and that is going to keep us in our comfort zone on the field too. I will support him as much as required during the matches.”