Virat Kohli called for a meeting with Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant and others in London, spoke to them for 2 hours: Report
June 20 will mark the dawn of a new era in Indian Test cricket, with young Shubman Gill leading the side in their first match since the sudden retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The five-match series against England begins at Headingley, Leeds, as India look to rebuild in the UK.
While Rohit's decision was widely speculated since he had dropped himself in the Sydney Test against Australia earlier this year amid a horrid run over four months in red-ball cricket, Kohli's announcement came as a huge shocker. For the legend who has been synonymous with Test cricket, which he always held as the ultimate format even amid the changing dynamics in world cricket, Kohli's retirement at just 36, especially just a month before the series in England, was expected by only a few.
Despite his retirement, Kohli is expected to keep an eye on the proceedings in the England series, which was evident from a report in a RevSportz video claiming that he invited the new Test captain Shubman Gill, his deputy Rishabh Pant and a few others to his residence in London just days before the opener in Leeds. India had an off day on Monday following the conclusion of the intra-squad match in Kent, so the players were available for a meet-up with Kohli.
While the report did not clarify what the meeting was about, with speculations ranging from talks about the upcoming series, to how Gill and Pant could marshal the young troop, it did reveal that the discussion lasted close to two hours.
The Indian team is expected to reach Leeds on Tuesday, where head coach Gautam Gambhir will meet the squad. The former India cricketer had left England to return home for a personal reason.
The side will be expected to train in the city over the next two days. RevSportz had also reported on Monday that fast bowler Harshit Rana was asked to stay back in England after the intra-squad match. He was earlier overlooked for the five-match series, having made his debut in Australia, where he played just two matches. Rana was in England with the India A squad, and played just one game against the Lions, where he picked a solitary wicket and scored 16 runs.
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