Shubman Gill claims India don’t care about Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma's absence vs England

Newly-appointed India National Cricket Team Test skipper Shubman Gill has made it clear that his side is unfazed by the absence of veterans Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli on the England tour.

Shubman Gill said that India's squad has got a 'good mix of talent and experience' and they are fully prepared to take on England even in the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

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Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retired just before the England tour

A month before the start of the India tour of England 2025, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirement from Test cricket. First, Rohit retired on May 7, 2025, then Kohli followed the same path, and on May 12, 2025, he stated that he would be walking away from red-ball cricket.

Rohit finished his Test career with 4301 runs in 67 matches at an average of 40.57. He had a decent run at the helm, but his tenure as captain ended on a disastrous note, with India facing an embarrassing whitewash at home and losing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a decade.

Meanwhile, Kohli had a legendary Test career. He played 123 Test matches and scored 9230 runs at an average of 46.85, finishing as the fourth-highest run-scorer for India in Tests behind Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, and Sunil Gavaskar.

This doesn’t call for extra pressure - Shubman Gill on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli's absence

At a pre-departure press conference in Mumbai, Shubman Gill was questioned if Team India would be under additional pressure in the absence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

Replying to this, Shubman Gill said that the young Indian team won't be under any kind of pressure as they have got a very strong unit.

“Both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are experienced players, and they have won us many games. It is always difficult to fill their space, but the team’s combination has a good mix of talent and experience," Gill said while speaking at the pre-departure press conference.

"This doesn’t call for extra pressure because we as a team are always ready to handle pressure and know how to win from such situations," Gill added.

We haven't really decided on the batting order - Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill has kept his cards close to his chest ahead of the England tour as he said that they are yet to finalize the new batting order of the Indian Test team. He said:

"We haven't really decided on the [batting order], we still have some time. We will be playing an intra-squad match [from June 13 to 16] and I think we will be having a 10-day camp in London. So we still have a little bit of time and I think we can decide on the batting order once we go there."

Shubman Gill further said that he doesn't want to follow a specific style as the Test captain and just wants to make a good bond with players and provide them with a secure environment.

"No particular style that I want to follow. I like communication with the players, making them feel secure. Making a bond with the players is very important for me as a captain. It is only when players are secure that they will give you their 100 percent," he said.