Team India Test captain Shubman Gill has opened his batting position before the initial test of the five -match series against England in Leeds. The right-handed batsman refused to give a clear answer to former Indian wicketkeeper-baater Dinesh Karthik during an interview recently.
Virat Kohli was India’s number 4 in Test cricket for more than a decade. However, Kohli is a significant position for a new player, with the longest format. In the last one month, there has been intensive debate and speculation that who should fill the zero and take this role in the batting lineup.
Shubman Gill, KL Rahul from number 4 options in Test matches
Several former cricketers and analysts have shared their support behind Karun Nair, KL Rahul, and Shubman Gill, who are as potential candidates to take number 4 in India’s Test lineup after Virat Kohli’s retirement. However, no official decision has been declared before the series yet.
With the first trial against England starting on 20 June in Headingly, everyone’s eyes are on her that will capture the major middle-order situation.
Only Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is expected to open, and Rishabh Pant is likely to bat on number 5 or 6, in batting order, safe places are visible. The remaining lineup remains uncertain, leaving the Indian team management with important options to create before the series.
I am probably going to test water – Shubman Gill
During an interview with Dinesh Karthik for Sky Sports, Shubman Gill was asked if he would bat at number 4 in the upcoming Test series against England. Gill, who played against Australia at number 3 in India’s last Test series, refused to respond.
He said that the final decision on the batting order would be made after the Intra-Squad Warm-up match. Gill said that the team would use the practice game to assess which player fits the best in which situation.
“Not really. I think we are playing a practice game, a warm-up game, so I am probably going to test the water in that one and see which batting position suits,” Gill said, as is quoted by News18.
Shubman Gill emerges as Frontner for India’s No. 4 Slot in Test
Shubman Gill is currently leading India’s number 4 slot in the trials. Gill has opened the batting and recently batted at number 3 during the 2023-25 World Test Championship cycle. He never batted at number 4 for India in any format.
KL Rahul, who has the experience of batting at number 4 in both tests and ODIs, is expected to retain his place as a opener for the England series. He scored a century for India against Lions of England in an informal test from 6 to 9 June at Northampton.
In the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Rahul scored 276 runs in 10 innings at an average of 30.67. He started the series with two fifties and 235 runs in the first three tests, but his form was immersed in the final four innings, where he scored just 41 runs.
Also read: Temba Bavuma becomes the biggest test of all time, the century destroys the old record