Former England captain Michael Vaughan feels that the onus of taking Indian Test cricket to the next level now falls on the shoulders of Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rishabh Pant, particularly in the absence of Virat Kohli, who, in his prime, "single-handedly" led the team.
Even though the Indian batting lineup has demonstrated grit after the retirement of veterans Kohli and Rohit Sharma, more so in the current series against England, Vaughan warned that initial success doesn't mean a full transformation.
"They (Gill, Jaiswal and Pant) must now push this Indian Test side like Virat did alone. There is a bunch of them that I see who play the game the correct way," Vaughan informed PTI.
They have a good opportunity in a couple of years' time of leaving a legacy for doing what Virat Kohli did to the Indian Test team. If they are able to be even half as close to what he did to the Test match team, the energy and the number-one status for so many years, they will have done a good job," he said.
Since both Kohli and Rohit have pulled out of the longest format just ahead of the England tour, Vaughan had observed that although India's rich reservoir of talent will ensure the team remains competitive, the singular shepherding and charisma of a personality like Kohli is difficult to replace.
You can't jump so quickly after two legends have retired or shifted out of the team. Shubman's had a great start as a player and a captain. He's a great player. From a batting point of view, I don't think the team will find it too difficult," Vaughan said.
“It’s that competitive energy that Virat brought to the Test team. He just brought that buzz and that intensity that you require. Tactically, he was very good as well. That’ll be something that Shubman can get better at over the years as captain,” he added.
Vaughan was also optimistic regarding India's Test prospects, highlighting the country's deep pool of cricketing talent. He, however, emphasized the importance of consistency, given India's failure to seal a win in two of the previous three World Test Championship (WTC) finals.
"I wouldn't be concerned about a Test side if I were India. You're always going to field a very competitive side…I'd want my Test side to be more consistent if I were India. With the talent that you possess in India, I'd want it to be more competitive in all the various avenues where they compete," he added.
Questions Over Bumrah and Kuldeep's Absence
Similar to most analysts, Vaughan was perplexed by the choice to exclude pace ace Jasprit Bumrah from the second Test, particularly in conjunction with the ongoing exclusion of spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who hasn't played at all in the series thus far.
"I didn't see that. Seven days' rest and you don't pick your best bowler. No Kuldeep, I don't see that too. I didn't quite understand that India would bowl first too here.".
"I just can't see why you would not want Kuldeep in the Test side. It's a five-day Test match and over five days a leg-spinner has a role to play. He has an amazing record against England. I would definitely be trying to play Kuldeep Yadav more if that were an Indian Test side.".
"When you are playing two spinners certainly the path to beating them, you score runs on the board and hope the pitch gets worse. I wouldn't view Headingley at anything other than that. If they'd have held the chances, India would have won," Vaughan clarified.
Despite some harsh words, Vaughan was confident England would take the series, pointing out that the hosts have not lost a five-Test series in their own backyard since 2001.
A Bond with India
After retirement, Vaughan has developed a strong bond with India, frequently persuading his friends to travel to India and soak up the country's culture. Although he played only two of his 82 Test matches in India, his television commentary work, especially for the Indian Premier League (IPL), has provided him with a lot of chances to see cities like Mumbai.
"I enjoy visiting India. I enjoy visiting Mumbai. The IPL is just a phenomenal juggernaut of success and glamour and so much drama, which is always nice to cover, but I just usually simply enjoy visiting Mumbai for a few weeks every year.".
"Whether it's Dindayal (street barber) cutting my hair in Mumbai outside the hotel or having a spot of paddle tennis or taking a stroll around the Oval Madan, it's great," he said affectionately.
"There is so much culture. In terms of the affection of the people, they are all so content. Everyone appears to be so contented in Mumbai, so it's always wonderful to visit," Vaughan added.
Test Cricket's Global Future
Vaughan is optimistic about the survival of Test cricket, particularly in strongholds such as England, where the sport continues to attract huge crowds. But he noted that the long-term health of the game internationally relies on improved financial distribution among cricket-playing nations.
"Test cricket does not require rescue. Test cricket in the past three years has been the most thrilling. I've been strongly saying that we must get the players to bowl the overs on the day provided. Don't play slow, just 90 overs per day.".
.if we can get the entire world playing Test cricket simultaneously, we want windows where it's purely Test cricket. A 50-over World Cup or a Tier 20 World Cup, all that's being played at that point in time. Everybody watching that one format.".
Implement two tiers, promotion and relegation, and I believe you will find that Test cricket will be a wonderful spectacle…We need to discover a way of making it more watchable everywhere in the world, not solely in two or three nations."
He ended with a blunt message for cricket's world governing body:
"The ICC has to spread the wealth more fairly across the board and if we wish two tiers to be competitive and we wish teams in the second tier to be able to get into the first tier, well, they can't do that without no money," Vaughan said.
“If that doesn’t happen and the spread of the cash is as it is now with the top three getting most of the money, we’ll have a game that will be them and us (big three),” he added.
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