"This was the most critical phase of the entire Test series" - Saba Karim on Shubman Gill's captaincy on Day 5 of ENG vs IND 2025 5th Test

Former India player Saba Karim has lauded Shubman Gill for his instinctive captaincy on Day 5 of the fifth Test against England. He pointed out that the final day was the most critical phase of the entire series.

India beat England by six runs in the final Test at The Oval on Monday, August 4. The result ensured that the two teams shared the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, with the series ending in a 2-2 draw.

During a discussion on Sony Sports, Saba noted that Gill's captaincy was properly tested on the final day of the series.

"The 45 minutes to one hour's play that happened today (Monday), I feel Shubman Gill's captaincy was properly tested there, his temperament, and the kind of decisions he takes. This was the most critical phase of the entire Test series. One can understand that you had to bowl Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna only, and you didn't have to take the second new ball," he said.

While acknowledging that Gill knew that he had to use Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna only and didn't have to take the new ball, the former India wicketkeeper-batter added that he had a tricky task of setting the field.

"However, he had to decide what field positionings to keep when you had two batters first, and then when the last pair was at the crease. Chris Woakes was at the other end, and you knew Gus Atkinson was trying to play shots at one end, and he played shots as well," Saba elaborated.

Saba praised Gill for trusting his instincts when Gus Atkinson and Chris Woakes were in the middle.

"I feel making those decisions was the most difficult for Shubman. He said another excellent thing when he spoke to (Cheteshwar) Pujara. He said he had come with plans and strategies, but, in the end, he took many instinctive decisions. I feel these are subtle signs that you want to create your own image," he observed.

Saba Karim acknowledged that Shubman Gill's captaincy seemed slightly defensive during the Test series against England. However, the former India selector opined that the approach might change in the upcoming series if he continues to captain instinctively.

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"It seemed like there was no pressure of captaincy when he was batting" - Saba Karim on Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill was chosen as India's Player of the Series. [P/C: Getty]

In the same discussion, Saba Karim was asked about Shubman Gill's batting in the Test series against England.

"The way he started, it seemed like there was no pressure of captaincy when he was batting, and that should be the case as well. You became a young captain because the selectors showed faith in your batting. He inspired the team with his game. He has contributed somehow or other in every Test match," he responded.

The cricketer-turned-commentator praised the youngster for adjusting his game quickly to red-ball cricket.

"It's not easy to score so many runs, that too in English conditions. It's only possible when you have worked hard to improve your red-ball cricket. You came here after playing the IPL. It's a massive challenge to immediately shift yourself from white ball to red ball, in terms of temperament and technical adjustments, but we saw all those things in Shubman Gill's batting," Saba observed.

With 754 runs at an average of 75.40 in 10 innings, Shubman Gill was the highest run-scorer in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. He fell only 20 runs short of Sunil Gavaskar's record for the most runs by an Indian batter in a Test series.

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Edited by Kartik Iyer