Ajit Agarkar alerted about Shubman Gill's 'unhealthy numbers' right after naming him Test captain

Former India batsman Aakash Chopra has expressed his reservations over Shubman Gill's appointment as the captain of India's Test team. The right-handed batsman was announced as the new Test captain by the BCCI on Saturday (May 24).

Shubman Gill made his debut in the longest format of the game in December 2020 during the tour of Australia. Even though the youngster has done extremely well in the 50-over format, the same cannot be said about his performance in the longest format of the game, although not many doubt his ability to excel in red-ball cricket as well.

He has played 32 Test matches so far and has scored 1893 runs at a modest average of 35.05. What's more concerning is that his average drops below 30 in overseas Tests.

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Unsurprisingly, the appointment has taken many by surprise. While it was widely anticipated that either Jasprit Bumrah or Rishabh Pant would become the next Test captain, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel has decided otherwise.

The decision has surprised Aakash Chopra as well. The former cricketer-turned-commentator has said that Shubman Gill's numbers in Tests are not very convincing. Chopra made it clear that Gill is yet to prove himself in Tests. He then went on to explain the possible reason behind Gill being picked as the man to replace Rohit Sharma as the Test captain.

"Lots (of challenges) actually in Test cricket. If it were ODIs, we would have said absolutely fine. He is the heir apparent. He is appointed as the vice captain for a significant period of time. So, we saw it coming but when you talk about Test cricket, you'd say he's still trying to figure out a place for himself, especially outside of the subcontinent. His average is 35. His overseas numbers are around 25, and that's not very healthy as a batter alone, let alone as the captain," Chopra told ESPNCricinfo.

"So, I see this as an investment of faith. You see somebody, you see promise and potential. You go with that guy with a lot of hope and some amount of belief that we are making the right choice," he added.

Aakash Chopra on Shubman Gill receiving the team's backing:

Chopra further pointed out that the team management has always backed Shubman Gill in Tests. He recalled the West Indies tour of 2023 when Gill voluntarily asked to bat at number three after Cheteshwar Pujara was dropped, and the team management gave it the green light.

"They've also done something earlier with Shubman Gill. I found that very unique. I think he had played only 15 Test matches and he was given the choice as to where he wanted to bat.

"He was an opener then Yashasvi Jaiswal came into the picture and Gill actually said I prefer number three. That choice was given to him, and I found it very odd at that time that after just playing about 15 Tests, it cannot be your call, it has to be the management's call," Chopra said.

Meanwhile, Gill's maiden assignment as the Test captain would be the challenging tour of England that gets underway next month. India are scheduled to play five Tests against England. The first match of the series will begin on June 20.