Sunny says Shubman is more competitive; praises IPL for gaining maturity
Legendary Indian batsman and former captain, Sunil Gavaskar feels the IPL is the perfect training ground for future India captains. According to Sunny, tremendous mental pressure of this League is providing the likes of Shubman Gill the required leadership experience before graduating to the highest level. Gujarat Titans skipper Gill is expected to captain India on the Test tour of England following the retirement of Rohit Sharma. Rishabh Pant is likely to be his deputy. Virat Kohli’s retirement, which came just days after Rohit’s decision, has left a massive void in the Test team. Gavaskar said it would take at least a couple of years for Gill and other potential leaders like Pant and Shreyas Iyer to become finished products. “It would take a couple of years (to groom future leaders) to get to the level of our super captains (MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli). All of them brought a different approach to captaincy,” said Gavaskar in a response to a PTI query on Star Sports Press Room. Pant is currently captaining LSG, while Iyer is leading the Punjab Kings in this IPL. “When you see Gill, Iyer, and Pant, three main pretenders to Indian captaincy, you see an amalgamation of all three (Dhoni, Rohit, Virat). Gill is probably more competitive; when there is a decision, he asks the umpire right away. He is probably a lot more involved. “Though Pant is behind the stumps, he is also very involved. Iyer, too, has been superb. All three have brought a lot of positivity in the way they have been captaining. “As a captain, nothing gets you more experience than the pressure of a T20 game. It is the best training ground for captaincy,” added the former India captain.
BCCI considers Gavaskar’s advice about the ‘no-entertainment’ part in the remainder of the IPL
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is seriously considering Sunil Gavaskar’s advice of rejecting the entertainment part in the remainder of the IPL, resuming from 17th May. Gavaskar urged the BCCI to organize the remaining 17 matches without cheerleaders and DJs. According to a report from India Today, the BCCI is now seriously considering the suggestion made by Gavaskar. IPL 2025 was suspended for a week on 8th May amidst cross-border tensions with Pakistan following the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam. The heinous attack claimed the lives of as many as 26 civilians. “The Indian cricket board will make a decision after Sunil Gavaskar urged the BCCI to stage the remaining 17 matches without cheerleaders and DJs,” the report said. As a gesture for those who died during the Pahalgam attack, Gavaskar felt that there should not be any entertainment (apart from the sport on display) in the remaining IPL matches. “What I would really like to see is these are the last few matches. I think we have had about 60 games or thereabouts. I think it will be around 15 or 16 matches in the remaining phase of the League. I would sincerely apologize for what has happened, and some families have lost their near and dear ones. I would like all the show-sha baji that goes with it not to be there. It should be just a game to be played. Let there be a crowd but no music. Let’s not have the DJs screaming in the middle of an over. None of that,” Gavaskar told Sports Today. He also stated, “Let’s just have a tournament, the balance of a tournament. No dancing girls, nothing. Just cricket would be a nice way to respect the sentiment of the families who have lost their near and dear ones.”
