Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 4 : Former spinner Harbhajan Singh believes the upcoming tour of England is "a great opportunity" for the newly crowned Test captain Shubman Gill and the young Indian team. However, players need to be given time, as it won't be easy to fill the void left by the absence of stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
India's two batting bigwigs, Virat and Rohit, bid adieu to the Test format in May, more than a month before the five high-stakes fixtures in England, scheduled to begin on June 20 at Headingley, marking the beginning of the World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.
Despite the hopes of its seasoned stars, Harbhajan hopes India can put up a fight in England, not get judged on whatever performance they put up and continue to get opportunities in future.
"Test cricket in England is going to be a challenging series for Shubman Gill, but it is a great opportunity for him and the entire young team. We should not judge the performance of players after just one series. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not there, so it won't be easy for the youngsters to fill the void left by them," Harbhajan told ANI.
"The young players should be given opportunities. The players selected are good players. I hope they fight in England and win. I don't believe there is a lack of talent. If we score 350 runs in the first innings, then we have the bowling to turn the game in our favour," he added.
Gill was appointed Rohit's successor in the Test format. He was in contention to compete in the second unofficial Test for India A against England Lions in Northampton from June 6. However, he won't take part, considering he will depart with the remaining squad for England on Thursday.
India's Test squad for England series: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.