Not taking England ODIs as practice for Champions Trophy - Gill

With an ICC tournament being held every year, it is understandable to miss out on the hype when a bilateral series is around the corner. For the men's game, 2025's ICC tournament is only a few weeks away as the Champions Trophy kicks-off in Pakistan/UAE. For India, the runners-up in the last ODI World Cup, the three-match series against England serves as their last opportunity to test the waters before the showpiece event.

Since the 2023 World Cup, India have only featured in six ODIs across two series. In December 2023, they won in South Africa, 2-1, before going down 0-2 in Sri Lanka during August last year. When the team takes the field on Thursday (February 6), it would have been approximately six months since India played in the format but vice-captain Shubman Gill is upbeat about the squad's ability to adapt after a long layoff. The 25-year-old also chose not to look at the England series as a warmup exercise.

"I think we are playing against a good side. Three ODIs and we are not taking this as a practice for Champions Trophy," said Gill at the pre-match press conference. I think this is a very important series for us. Every series is very important and we are looking to dominate and win this series like any other series."

The England series also marks a significant update in India's leadership transition plans. With Rohit Sharma nearing the end of his international career, talks are understandably about who his successor will be across formats. In such a scenario, Gill's appointment as the vice-captain of the full-strength Indian side does give an idea about the selectors' mindset. While his returns in Tests and T20Is have been lukewarm, Gill has had a phenomenal start to ODIs.

The opener has aggregated 2328 runs from 47 innings at an enviable average of 58.2 at a commendable strike-rate of 101.2. With the added responsibility of being part of the leadership group, all eyes are on how Gill deals with the extra pressure. When asked about the same, he opted to keep things simple. However, he also knows that this could be a potential stepping stone to proper leadership and hence, he'd want to be ready if and when the chance comes.

"Yes, I have been given an added responsibility and I take it as a challenge to lead, firstly with my performances and then definitely in the field if Rohit Bhai would want my opinion or anything. I think it's my duty to let him know what my thoughts are on the game.

"As a vice captain, it's a huge responsibility. I think, being part of the think-tank, how GG bhai (Gautam Gambhir) thinks, how Rohit bhai thinks. What are the plans for certain batsmen, certain bowlers, how to take on certain opposition. Just learning that, I think, is a big goal for me and that's what I will try to do."

With just three games to go for the Champions Trophy, there is speculation that the surfaces for the England series could be simulated to match the possible pitches that could be encountered in the ICC Tournament. While Pakistan are the technical hosts, the hybrid model worked out means that India's games will all be played in the UAE. The venue isn't an unknown for the side but preparation often becomes mandatory for any side with the ambition of going the full distance.

Gill, though, didn't give much away about the surfaces for the England ODIs and denied theories about India requesting such tracks. "I think the wicket dries up very quickly here. So I think their effort was to put some grass and water first, so that the pitch retains water well. So that the wicket doesn't dry up too much when it's hot and humid. So I think that's why they put some grass. No, we haven't given any instruction (about the choice of pitches)."

The current generation of Indian cricket is witnessing competition for spots like never before. Gill himself hasn't been considered for the shortest format and that speaks volumes about the talent pool. His standout ODI form has given him an edge over his peers and competitors like Yashasvi Jaiswal and Abhishek Sharma, but the Punjab batter dismissed talks of any unhealthy competition in the camp.

"They are my friends. Abhishek is a childhood friend of mine. Jaiswal is also a good friend. I don't think there is any toxic competition between us. Obviously, if you are playing for the country, you want to perform every match, irrespective of... You know, you don't really think about, oh, I wish this guy doesn't perform, or I wish he doesn't perform. You are playing, you are representing a country, you are playing for the team, and whosoever does well, you feel good for them, and you come here to play."

India's recent struggles in Tests had a butterfly effect on critics with respect to the 50-over side despite the latter not having featured for six months. Plenty of players, including Karun Nair, piled on the runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with benchmark numbers but couldn't find a spot in the national time, understandably so. GIll dwelled on this with a very logical take.

"They have performed well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, no doubt on that. But you also need to consider the fact that the batters who are already in the national side, they have also been doing well. The middle order. In the World Cup, they all made 400-450-500 runs. After that, we only played three ODIs as a group. We didn't get a long run. In the World Cup also, if you take out the final, the previous two years we have been performing well. So I think the players who are there already are performing well. So it is unfortunate that the domestic performers aren't getting a spot. But it won't be justice to the existing players if they are removed just because others are performing in the domestic circuit. If you do that, it won't be possible to build a consistent team."