A young Indian team travelled to England light but returned heavy with wins, lessons & a captain for the future

Time of India

a day ago

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The Gill Era
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Arise Sir Jadeja
Questions and Answers
Keeping the faith
The irony is palpable. When India embarked on their tour of England without Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin — three of their modern giants — with the news that Jasprit Bumrah would play only three of the five Tests and with Shubman Gill leading the Test team for the first time, expectations were suitably lowered.When a team is in transition — and it is fair to say that, save for Mohammad Siraj , the fastbowling unit lacked experience — a steep learning curve is to be expected. Add to the mix B Sai Sudarshan, Karun Nair, Washington Sundar and Dhruv Jurel, who had little to no Test experience, and a five-Test series away in England quickly became a daunting assignment.So much so that an advert did the rounds to catch the eye: 'Team India seekhne nahi, sikhane jaa rahi hai.' And so it panned out. This team was not there to learn, but to school the sceptics on what was possible.Forget about Gill the captain, of whom little was known beyond his white-ball exploits, there were enough questions around Gill the batsman. After all, an average in the low 30s was not something he could be proud of after being given the run he had. The talent and ability were clearly there, and the selectors were sitting on Gill for the long haul.Gill delivered in style. For some players, added responsibility comes with an opportunity to be themselves, to express themselves more fully. As Gill scored his (and the team's) runs, he ensured that he had the authority he needed to get the most out of his band of men.Tactically, Gill was far from perfect. There were times when he let the game drift, and his tendency to rely heavily on the quick bowlers, conditions notwithstanding, meant that the class of Ravindra Jadeja sometimes went underutilised with the ball. Gill was neither Kohli-aggressive nor Rohit-relaxed. He was his own man, being different things at different times. It's early days, but on the evidence so far, India won't be looking for another all-format captain for a very long time to come.At home, Jadeja has been the answer to all of India's balance questions. He runs through opposition batting when there is assistance, can keep one end bottled up if his captain needs control, and contribute properly with the bat lower down the order.But, overseas, there was the nagging feeling that his bowling could be blunted by conditions and his batting wouldn't stand up consistently enough. With a hundred and five half-centuries, Jadeja laid to rest any doubts about his place in the scheme of things. He may be getting along in years, but he has never been more valuable to the Test set-up than now.Whenever there are selections that buck conventional wisdom, the question of who had the final say arises. Gautam Gambhir, the coach, is a strong-willed character, and while it did appear as though Gill was given a free hand on the field, there was the suggestion that Gambhir imposed himself on the selection of the playing eleven.Had the result gone another way, on the back of a string of losses, these doubts would've grown louder. But, with India winning two Tests by picking teams that seemed to defy both playing to strengths or an all-out push for 20 wickets, it became clear that the coach's belief in his squad's depth and ability to compete at the highest level was spot on. Gambhir will know that it won't always be so. And fans will still be left asking how India went five Tests without giving Kuldeep Yadav a look in.If there was one chink that was woefully exposed in England, it was the challenge that has dogged India for the longest time. With Nitish Kumar Reddy injured, there was no other batsman capable of contributing 12- 15 overs of seam up in an innings. India have backups for most roles, but when it comes to seamers who can bat, or batsmen who can allow the primary fast bowlers a breather, the cupboard is as bare as ever.This meant bolstering the lower order with Shardul Thakur, something that did not pay off even on paper, given how little he was used with the ball. Going forward, Gill, with help from the coaching staff, will have to identify either a player or two who can fit the bill, or three different combinations that allow them to stay in the hunt for 20 wickets without leaving the tail an exceptionally long one