“He is a complacent cricketer” - Monty Panesar reveals why Shubman Gill can’t lead India across formats

Former England spinner and analyst Monty Panesar has made a startling comment on the Indian skipper Shubman Gill, stating that he is not ready to lead the Indian team across all formats. 

Speaking exclusively to ANI, Panesar has stated that the Indian Test captain is a complacent cricketer. While he hailed his talent, he noted that sometimes he plays lazy shots, adding that Gill can’t replicate Virat Kohli’s intensity and aggression across formats.

"He is a complacent cricketer. He has a lot of talent, but he starts playing lazy shots in the game. Virat Kohli's intensity and aggression are evident in all formats. Shubhman Gill can't do that. Too much burden for him. He can't be the captain of all formats. It is too much for him," Panesar told ANI.

Later, Panesar opened up on the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir, asserting that he is a good white-ball coach, while he needs to spend some time coaching a Ranji team to emerge as a better red-ball coach.

"Gautam Gambhir is a good coach in white-ball cricket because he has been successful. He could become the Ranji Trophy coach, and he should talk to the coaches who have coached in the Ranji Trophy about how you build a team in red ball cricket. Right now, the Indian team is weak in Test cricket. This is the reality. It's not that strong. It will take time. When you retire three big players, it becomes difficult to keep the remaining players ready," he added. 

Furthermore, Panesar stated that while Team India is not missing Virat Kohli in the white-ball formats, his absence in the red-ball team is quite evident, as seen in the recent South Africa series at home.

"In white-ball format, you won't miss Virat Kohli that much. But yes, in Test Cricket, it's evident that Virat Kohli is not there, and the team's intensity is lower,” he concluded.

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