New Delhi: Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary has voiced strong criticism regarding Shubman Gill’s aggressive captaincy style, suggesting it has negatively impacted his batting performance, particularly during the recent Lord’s Test where he failed to score significantly in both innings. Gill, who recently took over the Test captaincy, was notably animated on the field, engaging in a heated altercation with England’s Zak Crawley and displaying an aggressive demeanor. India’s defeat in the match has now sparked questions about his on-field intensity as a skipper.
Tiwary has joined other cricketers who believe Gill is attempting to emulate Virat Kohli’s aggressive captaincy template. However, the veteran Bengal batter argues that this approach has backfired for Gill as a batsman.
“I don’t like the way captain Gill is going about things. I think he is trying to copy what Virat did last time. And as a result, it is not helping his batting,” Tiwary told SportsBoom.
Gill had been in sublime form, hitting a century at Headingley, followed by a double ton and another commanding hundred at Edgbaston. However, he couldn’t replicate that success at Lord’s, managing only 16 and 6 runs in the two innings as India fell short in their chase of a modest 193-run target.
Tiwary pointed to Gill’s on-field behavior during an IPL match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, specifically an incident where he confronted the fourth umpire after being run out, as a sign of a shift in his usual calm demeanor. He observed that since becoming an IPL captain, Gill appears to have adopted a more aggressive stance, frequently engaging in animated exchanges with officials.
“Ever since he became a captain in the IPL, I have noticed that he is getting into an aggressive mindset, and having animated chats with umpires,” Tiwary added. “It was unlike Gill. He doesn’t need to show that kind of aggression, and doesn’t have to prove anything.”
Tiwary further advised Gill to stick to his natural style and avoid unnecessary verbal confrontations with the opposition or officials.
“He can stick to his style of being aggressive. It doesn’t mean that you have to always give it back verbally. Aggression can also be shown by winning Test matches. India could have easily led the series 2-1. Such aggression is not good for the game, especially from the captain of the Indian cricket team,” he stated.
Tiwary was particularly unimpressed with the language used by the Indian skipper after being irritated by Zak Crawley’s time-wasting tactics on Day 3 of the Lord’s Test. Gill, pushed to his limit, was caught on the stump mic yelling, “Get some bs, grow some fking b**s,” marking a heated end to the day.
“I am not happy with the language and words that are coming in the audio when they are near the stumps. You are representing the Indian cricket team. I think this has become a trend, as previous captains have probably used such words to express their anger, but this needs to be controlled. If you use slang, the next generation will pick it up,” the veteran Bengal cricketer concluded.