Gill's Leadership Under Scrutiny After Headingley Defeat: Critics Cite Lack of Kohli's Aura

Following India's five-wicket loss to England in the first Test at Headingley, Shubman Gill's captaincy debut has come under intense scrutiny. Despite India posting five individual centuries, the team failed to defend a target of 371, leading to questions about Gill's leadership and tactical acumen.

England defeated India by five wickets in the first Test at Headingley, chasing down a target of 371, with Ben Duckett scoring a remarkable 149. Shubman Gill's captaincy debut faced scrutiny from former captains Nasser Hussain and Ravi Shastri, who questioned his on-field leadership and tactical decisions.

Former England captain Nasser Hussain didn't hold back in his assessment of Gill's leadership compared to his predecessors, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

"I thought I saw someone just finding his way, honestly," Hussain stated on Sky Sports. "You've got to be very careful in the first Test match, the people he's taken over from, Kohli, and then Rohit Sharma. I thought he didn't quite have that on-field aura as the names I mentioned there. You look down on those two previous names, and you immediately see who was in charge of India."

Hussain also observed that Gill appeared to be delegating responsibilities to several senior players, a common occurrence for new captains. He described it as "captaincy by committee," suggesting that experienced players like Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul were heavily involved in decision-making.

"I looked down from the press box, the commentary position, there were a lot of captains; it was a bit captaincy by committee, which can happen in your early days as a leader because you're still senior players like Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul want to try and help you out as much as possible. I thought he followed the ball a lot. I thought he was reactive as opposed to proactive," he said.

Hussain further questioned India's bowling strategies, specifically regarding the utilization of Ravindra Jadeja. He suggested Gill should have taken a more proactive role in guiding his senior spinner.

"A word with Jadeja, maybe as a young captain, to go to such an experienced spinner, and go, you do know the rough is out there. Ravi Shastri and Mark Butcher are up there, going, show us where that ball is pitching, and it was pitching nowhere near the rough," Hussain explained.

He concluded by noting the lack of communication regarding bowling tactics.

"Ravi was saying, a bit slow, a bit wide, bowl in the rough. I was surprised that not one of the senior players or captains went to Jadeja and said, Can we go a little bit wider. But Ravi's right, they lost the game for two things that he couldn't control," he added.

With the second Test looming, Gill's captaincy is under the microscope. The series will be a crucial test of his ability to grow into the leadership role and silence his critics.