Shubman Gill orders Indian Test players to do THIS huge thing; starts planning for ODI World Cup 2027 - Reports

Shubman Gill has important few years ahead of him as the Indian Cricket Team’s Test and ODI captain.

Indian Cricket Team captain Shubman Gill has been under massive pressure for the last few months. His leadership came into question after the recent series defeat against New Zealand in the three-match ODI series. The BlackCaps crushed India 2-1 in the campaign, clinching their first-ever 50-over series victory in India.

Moreover, India also suffered a test series defeat against South Africa in November by losing both games. The Temba Bavuma and Co. dominated India with both bat and ball, while also handing them their biggest ever defeat in a test match by the margin of runs. India lost the second test in Guwahati by 408 runs. Notably, Gill was ruled out of the campaign due to a neck injury and vice-captain Rishabh Pant led the side.

Gill was appointed as the test captain in May last year, taking over the reins of the side from Rohit Sharma ahead of ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle. Ahead of India’s tour of Australia in October 2025, he was also named as Rohit’s successor in the 50-over format.

For Gill, the ICC WTC 2025-27 final next year in June and the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027 in October and November will be the two major events. India will next play tests later this year in August, when they will tour Sri Lanka for two-match series. However, Gill has already started planning for the test team and made a few recommendations for his teammates.

Shubman Gill wants test players to play in Ranji Trophy 2026

According to a report by The Times of India, Gill wants test players to play in the second leg of Ranji Trophy 2025-26. He has conveyed this recommendation to India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir.

Gill wants to ensure that regular test players get enough red-ball games before the next assignment against Sri Lanka. The upcoming round of Ranji Trophy will feature many Indian stars and Gill wants them to play at least one game for their respective domestic teams before featuring in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The second leg of the tournament will start on January 22 and conclude in the last week of February.

In the past, players have avoided playing in the Ranji Trophy before the Indian Premier League. However, ahead of the ODI series against New Zealand, there was a discussion between the captain, chief selector, and head coach and the management agreed to this suggestion.

Gill, who is not part of ICC T20 World Cup 2026, is making plans for the ongoing WTC cycle as well as the ICC ODI World Cup 2027. Earlier, the 26-year-old had also reckoned that players should undergo a preparation camp ahead of the test series at home.

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