By News18
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has said that Shubman Gill is absolutely the opposite personality of ace batter Virat Kohli, but the Test skipper would want someone like the latter to fire the team up during their five-match series against England, which hasn鈥檛 begun on a great note for the visitors.
India will need to shed their conservative selection approach and give themselves the best opportunity to take 20 wickets on what is expected to be another batting pitch in the second Test against England.
After Kohli retired from Tests in May, there weren鈥檛 many figures with such aura and intimidating qualities left in the Indian team, and the difference in attitude was visible in the first Test at Headingley, with multiple experts pointing it out.
鈥淣orth pole, south pole. Exactly. But he鈥檒l want someone like Virat in the team to, you know, when the players are on the field, get the bowlers g鈥檇 up, get the fielders g鈥檇 up, have a crack at the batters,鈥 Shastri said while speaking on Sky Sports, when asked how different Gill and Kohli were as personalities.
鈥淗e鈥檒l want someone like Virat鈥 ?锔
Ravi Shastri discusses the difference in personality between Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli ?? pic.twitter.com/XbMXKobPYV
鈥 Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) July 2, 2025
鈥淵ou know you need a couple of blokes like that. I know Rishabh Pant will make a lot of noise at the back, but another couple of blokes, if they can be groomed. Yes. Very good,鈥 Shastri added with a grin.
The question mark ahead of the match was over ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah鈥檚 availability. Gill said on Wednesday that a decision on the former will be taken just after taking a look at the track.
At the toss on Thursday, Gill declared that Bumrah had been rested for the match.
Shastri expressed disbelief at India鈥檚 decision to rest Bumrah from the second Test against England, asserting that he shouldn鈥檛 have been given the option to sit out of an important match.
India, enduring a rough patch in Tests since October 2024, have managed just one victory in their last nine games, marking their worst run in more than 10 years.