The Indian cricket culture is too traditional to adapt to the split captaincy approach. Rarely do we see three captains or two captains to oversee the three differently paced formats. In the current scheme of things, Shubman Gill is the leader of Tests and one-day internationals, while Suryakumar Yadav is the T20I captain. However, with Gill being Suryakumar’s deputy, we all know that he might take over from SKY as soon as the T20 World Cup 2026 ends. That is the obsession that the BCCI has with having an all-format captain.
However, former cricketer and current TV pundit Abhinav Mukund has offered his viewpoint and feels that Gill shouldn’t be India’s all-format captain. While Mukund doesn’t doubt Gill’s abilities, it is just that he feels that split captaincy is a smarter move.
“I think Shubman has it in him to become an all-format captain, but I do not think India should have an all-format captain anymore.” Abhinav Mukund said while speaking on The Great Indian Cricket Show on Doordarshan. “Split captaincy is a smart move. Shubman Gill has been given the responsibility to take on the mantle in Tests and he will be under big pressure.”
Mukund’s comments came after India lost the first Test to South Africa at home. It was India’s fourth defeat in Tests at home in the last six games, painting a worrisome image. Under Gautam Gambhir, the combination and attitude look questionable. While Gill was himself ruled out in between the Test due to an unfortunate neck spasm, the other players didn’t put their hands up in crunch situations.
Shubman Gill – Face of Indian cricket soon?
Following the Test retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, India made Shubman Gill the new captain of the red-ball format. While Jasprit Bumrah was in contention, he ruled himself out with fitness concerns looming as well. Gill quickly elevated his game in the role as he was absolutely brilliant in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy that fittingly ended 2-2. He ended up breaking all kinds of records with the bat and soon the BCCI made him the ODI captain as well.
With an eye for the future, Gill replaced Rohit Sharma as the new ODI skipper last month and the noise for Gill’s era just begun. With him being involved in the T20Is as well, Gill is perhaps the most important cricketer in the country. While he is bound to improve further as a captain, the workload management should be taken into consideration as well.
