'Great honor': Captain Shubman Gill on first Test series win
What's the story
Shubman Gill, India's newly appointed Test captain, has expressed his thoughts after leading the team to a 2-0 series victory against West Indies at home. "It's a big honor (to lead India), I'm kind of getting used to it. Managing all the players," said Gill during the presentation ceremony. This was Gill's first Test series win as captain, marking a new chapter in leadership following the era of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Elation
Gill elated with series win over WI
Under Gill, India won the Ahmedabad Test by an innings and the Delhi Test by seven wickets to complete the series whitewash (2-0) over the Windies. Earlier this year, Gill made a mark in his debut Test series as captain, in England. India managed to draw the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2-2 by winning the Oval Test. After winning the Delhi Test against WI, Gill said, "Leading this team is a great honor."
Leadership insights
Bold decisions depend on players: Gill
Gill also elaborated on his decision-making process as a captain, saying he tries to make the "most probable decision" based on the situation at hand. He also added that sometimes bold decisions are required, which depend on players who can deliver runs or wickets. The 26-year-old defended his decision to enforce the follow-on after India took a 270-run lead in Delhi. He stated the wicket was quite dead.
Team strategy
Finding spots for players overseas
Gill also spoke about Nitish Kumar Reddy, the fast-bowling all-rounder, who didn't bowl a single over in this match. "He didn't really get to bowl any over in this match. We don't want players to only play matches overseas. That puts a lot of pressure on the players. We want to groom certain players that we think can help us win matches overseas because that's been the challenge for us," added Gill.
Batting
How Gill, the batter, fared
Gill, who shattered records in England, continued his form in the West Indies series. He slammed 192 runs across two Tests at 96.00, including a century in Delhi. "When I want to go out there, I just want to make decisions as a batsman. The one thing that you always strive for is how you make your team win a match. And as a batsman, when I'm going out there, that's my thought that I have," said Gill.
Match summary
How the 2nd Test panned out
While Yashasvi Jaiswal (175) missed out on a double-ton in India's first innings, Gill made 129*. Sai Sudharsan also contributed with a fine 87 as India declared at 518/5. A fifer from Kuldeep Yadav meant WI posted just 248/10 in response and were asked to follow on. Though Shai Hope, John Campbell, Justin Greaves, and Jayden Seales helped WI avoid an innings defeat, India prevailed by accomplishing the 121-run target with KL Rahul's half-century.