NEW DELHI: Former India Test captain and current ODI skipper Rohit Sharma, who recently retired from red-ball cricket at the age of 38, was seen vacationing in Milan even as Team India battles England in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy five-Test series. His successor, Shubman Gill, came under fire following India’s five-wicket defeat in the series opener at Headingley — his first match as Test captain.Rohit, now focused solely on One-Day Internationals, shared glimpses of his holiday in Italy on social media, including a photo of the iconic Duomo di Milano cathedral. His next cricketing assignment is scheduled for August, when India tours Bangladesh for a three-match ODI series starting on August 17.Meanwhile, India endured a frustrating loss at Headingley, where England chased down a steep target of 371 runs in the fourth innings — their second-highest successful chase in Tests and the highest ever against India.
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Former England captain Nasser Hussain, speaking on Sky Sports, was critical of Gill’s captaincy debut.“I saw someone finding his way. He didn’t quite have that on-field aura of Rohit and Kohli. I thought he followed the ball a lot and was reactive rather than proactive. When Rohit and Kohli captained, you looked down and immediately knew who was in charge. In this game, I saw two or three captains — captaincy by committee,” Hussain said.England’s victory was anchored by Ben Duckett’s explosive 149, aided by Joe Root’s unbeaten 53 and debutant Jamie Smith’s steady 44 not out.Despite India boasting five individual centuries across both innings — with Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rishabh Pant all reaching triple figures — the team failed to convert that dominance into a win.
While highlighting Gill’s leadership struggles, Hussain also noted that the young captain wasn’t solely to blame for the loss.“India lost the match because of two things Gill couldn’t control — dropped catches and batting collapses,” he said, referencing India’s sloppy fielding and key middle-order failures.India had England at vulnerable positions — 276/5 in the first innings and 333/4 in the second — but failed to capitalise. Crucial batting collapses saw India lose 7 wickets for 41 runs in their first innings and 6 for 31 in the second, ultimately swinging the match in England’s favour.
