Shubman Gill will make his debut as India’s Test captain during the five-match series against England. This will be India’s first assignment after Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket. The team will also miss Ravichandran Ashwin, who retired from international cricket in the middle of the Border-Gavaskar series.
Monty Panesar, former England spinner, wants the youthful Indian team to build on Kohli’s legacy in the red ball format.
“The one thing I want the Indian squad to do is carry on Virat Kohli’s legacy.
The way he played Test cricket. “I’d like to see the young Indian team play like that,” Panesar told
The cricketer-turned-expert was also questioned if there was a player on the Indian team who may become the next Virat Kohli. Panesar identified Sai Sudharsan, who received his first Test call-up last month, as the next Indian cricket hero, citing his daring approach and experience playing in English conditions during his time with Surrey.
“Yes, there are several extremely good young batsmen in the team right now, and one of them is a Surrey player. Sai Sudharsan represented Surrey as an overseas player. He appears combative and courageous; he is a player who has performed admirably in English circumstances, as well as for Surrey. So, I believe he has the potential to be the next Indian cricket superstar, playing the role of Virat Kohli at No. 4,” Panesar added.
Sudharsan, who is likely to make his Test debut as a No. 3 batter, has 1957 runs to his name in 29 first-class matches played so far. However, he could face stiff competition for a spot in the side from Abhimanyu Easwaran, who scored a fluent 80 while batting at No. 3 for India A against England Lions in the second unofficial Test at Northampton on Sunday, June 8.
