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The India National Cricket Team will be up against the Sri Lanka National Cricket Team for a two-match Test series ahead of the first Test match at the Galle International Stadium, Galle. Former Australia National Cricket Team opener Matthew Hayden has backed Shubman Gill to win matches and to handle the captaincy pressure in ODIs and Test matches.
Shubman Gill had the best of starts to his captaincy tenure as he drew his first series in England with a young squad. The team India captain was excellent in the series and showcased his talent during the series. However, in the home series against South Africa, his side lost 0-2, and he won his first series as captain in a one-off Test against Afghanistan.
"He has many challenges to face"- Mathew Hayden on Shubman Gill
While speaking with ANI, Mathew Hayden has backed Shubman Gill to lead the side well and called him "a wonderful young man and a good leader," despite India’s poor performance in ODIs and Test cricket under him. He stated that the Men in Blue have a lot to work on in the traditional format of the game, but Gill will pass all challenges.
"I guess in many ways India as a cricketing nation has also had a brilliant captain in Shubman Gill. He has many challenges to face, none of which is more important than the survival of Test match cricket," Hayden told ANI.
"They've got a job to do"- Mathew Hayden on India's Test team
India had a poor start to the World Test Championship cycle (2025-27) as they lost two back-to-back home series against the SENA countries and were clean-swept. Though they played an amazing brand of cricket in England but failed to win the series. They are currently fifth in the WTC 2025-27 standings, having won four and lost four of their nine matches, with one draw.
"And I feel India are in a much better position to continue their winning ways in the short formats, 50-over in particular, and T20 cricket, and they do have some work to do as most nations do in and around their Test and longer formats," he said.
"So I'm sure Shubman Gill will be up to that challenge. He's a wonderful young man and a good leader, and he's got a good team around him, albeit a team that's going to need to perform, some younger players and some more experienced players. But they've got a job to do ahead of the World Test Championship final, which is in June next year," he added.
Mathew Hayden on comparison of Indian cricketers of different eras
The former Australia opener also discussed how the current Indian team compares to earlier eras' star-studded squads, which included Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.
"I think that good cricketers are good cricketers. It doesn't matter whether you're comparing the times of the Bradman era, the times of Sachin Tendulkar, the Sourav Ganguly era. The full member nation teams are always full of very good cricketers," Hayden said.
He added, "What we're seeing now in Indian cricket is a fantastic young group of players who have much to prove across all formats of the game."
