Ahead of the first ODI between India and England, veteran cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has opined on the importance of the three-match series for Shubman Gill. He also added that Indian captains haven’t enjoyed a great run lately, with Shreyas Iyer not winning a single game in his first seven T20Is as captain as well. However, the first ODI between India and England will take place in Birmingham on Tuesday, July 14.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, ‘Aakash Chopra,’ he said, “This is a very important series for Shubman Gill because he went to Australia for his first series and faced defeat there, we won the South Africa series for sure but he wasn’t available, and then we lost the New Zealand series in which he was playing,” Chopra said. “The Indian captains’ time is not going well at the moment. You can ask Shreyas Iyer about it. He just got a new assignment, and he hasn’t tasted a win as a captain, which is a tough one, but this is the reality.”

“Shubman Gill’s previous England tour, which was his first tour as a captain, he scored more than 700 runs, and the team drew that series. He did a phenomenal thing on that tour, and he will have to do that once again in ODIs. For that, he needs to score runs, because he has been in great form. He is in an absolute purple patch,” he again shared.

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However, Aakash Chopra also stated that Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul would also have to take additional responsibility in the ODI series against England.

“However, along with him, since this is a 50-over game and Hardik Pandya isn’t there and I am asking them to play with only six batters, you will need a little more responsibility from Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul, and there is no time this time,” he said.

“This team has changed totally. Shreyas Iyer is the only overlapping player from the T20I team. If they play Ishan Kishan, there will be overlap, or else it’s a totally new team. So they will have to adapt to the new conditions. We saw in the T20I setup that adaptability was a problem. However, will they be able to adapt now, because there is no time for adaptation?” Chopra concluded.