Abhishek Sharma has reserved big praise for his childhood friend Shubman Gill, who on May 24 was appointed as the new captain of Indian men’s Test cricket team. According to Abhishek, who has played with Gill since their U-14 days, he is very proud of his friend and he referred Gill as one of the best players India has produced in all three formats.
Gill, who is leading Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025, will make his Test captaincy debut for Indian team on June 20. His first game as India’s Test captain will be against England at Headingley in Leeds. He has previously captained India in five T20Is against Zimbabwe in July 2024 and won four of them.
“I think if I see his career you know if I remember the old days when we were just started playing for the U-14 and U-16 Punjab team. As youngsters, we all started with the red ball, from that time to now, it is a big achievement to become India’s Test captain and I feel very proud of him,” Abhishek said in a video released by Star Sports.
“Humne junior cricket saath dekha tha… (We’ve watched and played junior cricket together.) He is one of the best players India has produced in all three formats, and wo acha isko nibhayega bhi (he will play his role to perfection). I believe he will do really well for Team India and as a captain as well,” he added.
Gill, who is India’s vice-captain in ODIs, was picked for the top job by BCCI on Saturday over the likes of Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah and KL Rahul.
The right-handed batter from Punjab, who made his Test debut on December 26, 2020, against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, has played 32 Tests so far and, with the help of five centuries and seven fifties, has 1893 runs to his name.
Gill has played 10 Tests against England to date and amassed a total of 592 runs. He has two centuries and three fifties to his credit against the Poms.
