‘Aggression Isn’t Natural to Gill Like It Was to Kohli’: Manjrekar on Captain’s On-Field Feud and Impact on Batting

During the ongoing India vs England Test series, Virat Kohli’s absence has been felt not just for his batting, but for the energy and intensity he brought to the field. From firing up the crowd to staring down opponents, Kohli’s aggressive leadership was often a driving force behind India’s momentum — especially during challenging sessions.

While India have largely held their own in the series, the one major setback came at Headingley, where England chased down a mammoth 371-run target on Day 5 to take a 1–0 lead. Following the defeat, former cricketers like Ravi Shastri and Nasser Hussain pointed to a missing spark in leadership under new captain Shubman Gill.

Though Gill has led from the front with the bat — scoring three centuries including a record-breaking 269 — critics felt he lacked the aggressive on-field attitude, particularly when India struggled to bowl England out. His attempt to inject some fire during the third Test at Lord’s — by getting into a verbal spat with openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett at the end of Day 3 — seemingly backfired.

The exchange not only fired up England’s dressing room, with Stuart Broad animatedly responding, but also appeared to rattle Gill himself. When he came out to bat late on Day 4, he was met with intense sledging from the English fielders. The typically composed Gill looked unnerved, eventually falling for a 9-ball 6 after misjudging a full toss.

Commenting on the situation, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar warned Gill against adopting a combative persona that doesn’t align with his natural temperament.

“If someone is trying to build a brand by projecting ‘we are Indians, not less than anyone’, it does get attention. I just hope Shubman Gill wasn’t doing it for that,” Manjrekar said on JioHotstar.

He contrasted Gill’s behavior with that of Virat Kohli, for whom aggression was a natural fuel for his game.

“Kohli thrived on confrontation. It brought the best out of him. If he had batted at Lord’s in that situation, I’m confident he’d have scored a century. Gill, though brilliant so far, looked completely out of character — almost as if he was trying to be someone he’s not.”

Manjrekar added that the way Gill batted — hesitant and subdued — did not reflect the form he has shown throughout the series.

“He has batted like Bradman at times, but in those nine balls, he looked like he was on a pair. That tells me aggression doesn’t come naturally to him.”

Gill’s confrontation also had lasting consequences. England came out firing in the second innings, with Ben Stokes bowling two long spells and Jofra Archer unsettling India’s top order. Despite a valiant fight from Ravindra Jadeja and the tail, India fell short of the 193-run target by 22 runs, losing a Test that had once looked within their grasp.