Shubman Gill: Captaincy Brings Out the Best in Me

Shubman Gill's leadership debut with the Indian cricket team in the recent T20I series against Zimbabwe proved to be a transformative experience for the young batsman. Gill, who had previously captained India A and Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League, relished the opportunity to lead the national side and believes it brought out the best in him.

"It is something that I definitely enjoy," Gill said about captaincy. "I think it brings out the best in me when I am out there because I look to be involved in the game. It is something that really brings out the side of me which I enjoy being on the field."

Despite the initial setback in the opening game of the series, Gill quickly found his footing as captain, guiding India to four consecutive victories. He acknowledged the pressure that came with the role but emphasized the immense satisfaction of overcoming it and helping the team succeed.

"There was pressure, I wouldn't say extra pressure but obviously even when you are playing just as a batsman when you don't perform there is a certain kind of pressure that comes along with it," he said. "But I think that's the fun part of it. You kind of feel so many different emotions. Pressure is one of them. And when you get out of that, the satisfaction that you feel is immense."

Gill's leadership style was characterized by his understanding of the players and their abilities. Having played with or against many of his teammates at various levels, he felt comfortable in his role and was able to effectively communicate with them.

"To be able to lead such phenomenal talented players, who I have had the pleasure to play with or against at some stage in age-group cricket or Under-19 or at the India level, it just feels very amazing," Gill said. "When you have played against or with so many of the players... I think almost with everyone I have played against or with at some age-group level, it definitely makes my job easier because I understand them at a player level and I understand them as a person as well."

Reflecting on the team's performance in the series, Gill identified the first T20I as a learning experience. He admitted that India failed to assess the conditions properly, leading to their defeat.

"I think that is the mistake we did in the first T20, the score wasn't that big but I think we didn't assess the conditions as early and we lost too many wickets in the powerplay and then once you are under pressure, then you are always behind in the game," he said.

While Gill did not name any specific captain as his idol, he expressed admiration for Rohit Sharma's leadership qualities.

"You can take qualities from Rohit bhai or even Mahi (MS Dhoni) bhai, Virat (Kohli) bhai, Hardik (Pandya) bhai, all of them," he said. "All of them have great qualities. I have played the most under Rohit bhai, so he is someone who I look up to and really enjoy playing under."

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