'You're not Virat Kohli': Sanjay Manjrekar slams Shubman Gill's 'forced aggression' after Lord's defeat

Shubman Gill finds himself at a pivotal moment in his young captaincy career. While leading India in England, he has already tasted the highs of a commanding 336-run victory in the second Test. Yet, with the series level, his leadership is under the microscope following two narrow defeats where England seized crucial moments.

The latest to weigh in is former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar, who has questioned Gill’s recent on-field aggression, suggesting it feels uncharacteristic and may be negatively affecting his batting.

Manjrekar’s critique stems from a flare-up late on Day 3 of the Lord's Test. With scores level and the day's play winding down, Gill engaged in a heated exchange with England opener Zak Crawley over alleged time-wasting tactics. The fiery display, however, was followed by a meek performance with the bat. Chasing 193 for victory the next day, Gill was dismissed for just 6, and India ultimately fell 22 runs short, surrendering the series lead.

Speaking on ESPNCricinfo, Manjrekar drew a sharp contrast between Gill and the famously combative Virat Kohli, arguing that aggression must be authentic to be effective.

“And just to extend on that point, if Shubman Gill had that kind of a fiery side to him, we would have seen it a little earlier. You don’t have to show it when you’re captain. Or did he show it because he’s got this confidence now that he’s won a Test match and he’s got so many runs?” Manjrekar said.

He pointed out that this aggressive streak seems new for Gill, unlike Kohli, whose confrontational style was evident long before he took the helm.

“Because with Virat Kohli, you could see that he was ready for a scrap. He was always waiting to get in the thick of things. Even when he wasn’t a captain, you could see him coming in there. So that was a trait that we’d seen even before he was captain. With Shubman Gill, I’ve never seen it before,” he continued.

The most crucial difference, according to Manjrekar, is how each player responded to on-field tension. He observed that while conflict fueled Kohli's batting, it seemed to have the opposite effect on Gill, who appeared rattled after the verbal spat at Lord's.

“The thing with Virat Kohli was that he would get even more fired up and become a better batter (if things got nasty). What disappointed me with Shubman Gill and that is why I was wondering, where is Shubman Gill heading? Because that seemed like it didn’t have the right effect on Shubman Gill the batter,” Manjrekar noted.

“He came out looking very tentative and, you know, these days we are privy to the stump mic and we could hear the things being said and there were some personal attacks made. This could be a new experience for Shubman Gill because these days, as you can see, you know, with Indian players, there’s mostly friendly reception from a lot of foreign teams. So this was new territory. And he looked tentative and wasn’t up for it.”

Despite the setbacks at Headingley and Lord’s, the series is far from over. Gill still has the chance to etch his name into history by leading India to just their fourth-ever series victory in England, a feat last achieved under Rahul Dravid in 2007. To do so, his team must secure a win in the fourth Test, which begins Wednesday at Manchester’s Old Trafford.

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