India has taken the fitting determination by handing the reins of the Take a look at crew to Shubman Gill and now the teen should be given a protracted rope to show his credentials, says Ricky Ponting, who can also be assured that India can deal with the continuing transition section higher than different international locations.
India can be with out stalwarts Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, who all retired not too long ago, and pacer Mohammed Shami when it begins its five-Take a look at tour of England on June 20.
Whereas Kohli and Rohit retired from Assessments final month, Ashwin had hung up his boots throughout the Australia tour final yr and Shami was dominated out on health grounds for the tour of the Previous Blighty.
“I truly suppose it’s the fitting transfer. I do know there’s quite a lot of different folks on the market, pundits on the market saying they will’t perceive why it wasn’t Bumrah and why they’ve gone to Shubman, however I feel it’s fairly easy,” Ponting advised The ICC Evaluation.
“Bumrah’s accidents are holding him again a bit within the final couple of years and also you don’t need that with a captain. You’ll be able to’t have a captain coming in and lacking video games right here and there, so I feel it’s the fitting determination. Now that they’ve made it, it’s one they’ve bought to stay with and provides him (Gill) a great crack at it for a protracted time period,” he stated.
Ponting stated it might be robust to interchange gamers with expertise however stated India ought to be capable to deal with the transitional section higher than every other Take a look at-playing facet.
“It’s at all times very laborious to interchange gamers like that, (given) which have been round for thus lengthy which have performed that a lot Take a look at cricket. But when any nation can do it and do it rapidly, India can, due to the quantity of younger expertise that they’ve,” Ponting stated.
“I’ve seen it first hand for 10 years now across the IPL and we’ve seen the emergence of (Yashasvi) Jaiswal and these kind of guys which have come into worldwide cricket with India and (have) achieved rather well just about immediately. The ability facet of it’s one factor to interchange, and India will exchange the ability facet of it simply sufficient, however the expertise is the massive factor that’s going to be lacking for them.”
He continued, “Now even with a younger captain with Shubman Gill, they’ll nonetheless have some expertise round with KL Rahul and Bumrah and these kind of guys. However in the event you take a look at a rebuilding kind of section, India can address it higher than most different groups.”
Ponting, who coached Punjab Kings to the Indian Premier League (IPL) closing this yr, stated left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh must be named within the enjoying XI for the primary Take a look at at Headingley.
“I might even have him of their Take a look at crew in the beginning (of the England sequence). He’s very skillful, he has performed County cricket, he is aware of the situations there and the Dukes Ball will assist him within the UK as nicely,” he stated.
“To have that time of distinction, having a left-armer in your crew, can be one thing that if India don’t do it then it’ll be a little bit of a shock to me. As we all know, in England the ball nonetheless swings (be it) 30, 40 or 50 overs outdated. To have somebody that’s bought that swing bowling means and a left-armer, (it) is one thing that the Indian crew ought to undoubtedly look out for on that tour,” he added.