India’s two-Test tour of Sri Lanka is all set to get underway on Saturday (August 15) in Galle. The series is extremely crucial for Shubman Gill’s men as they aim to go up in the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 standings.
On the eve of the series opener, skipper Gill addressed a press conference, where he expressed satisfaction with how the transitioning squad has progressed in his first year as Test captain.
Gill’s stint started with the 2025 tour of England, where he led inexperienced team to a commendable 2-2 draw. The right-hander smashed a record-breaking 754 runs on the tour, including a monumental 269 at Edgbaston, securing the highest score by an Indian captain in a Test on English soil.
He encountered his first home series defeat as captain against South Africa while battling a neck injury that sidelined him for a significant part of the rubber.
Gill tasted his first series win as Test captain when India whitewashed the West Indies in a two-match series at home last year. He successfully navigated a non-WTC fixture against Afghanistan, completely dominating the opposition in New Chandigarh.
"I am very comfortable with the captaincy role and I think the way we have been, you know, progressing in the past one year... it has been very pleasing to see from my perspective. And I think we are taking all the right steps in the right direction," Gill told reporters on Friday (August 14).
However, Gill acknowledged that his team faces an uphill to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
India currently sit fifth in the WTC points table, holding 52 points and a points percentage (PCT) of 48.15%. They need to win six or seven of their remaining nine Test matches in the current cycle to secure a spot for the title clash.
"Obviously, now the main goal is to play the World Test Championship final, which is next year. We have got about nine Tests and I think we have to win around 6 or 7 to be able to have a good chance at qualifying.
"So in terms of that, I think that this is (versus Sri Lanka) a very important series for us and we have had the right kind of preparation leading up to the series," the Indian captain added.
This opening fixture against Sri Lanka marks India's 600th Test match since making their format debut 94 years ago in 1932. Gill viewed the opportunity as a great honour.
"It's a very big honour and privilege, you know, any Test Match that you captain for your country. Obviously, leading my country in our 600th Test match is a big honour and privilege for me and doing that on Independence Day is even more special," he remarked.
Gill noted that the surface at the Galle International Stadium offers a good amount of bounce. He compared this specific characteristic to the red soil pitches found in Mumbai (such as the Wankhede Stadium), which traditionally offer more bounce and carry compared to the black soil tracks found in other parts of India.
"To begin with there is a big similarity that the spinners play a huge role, especially when the ball gets old. Differences, I mean it depends where you are playing in India because India has got different kinds of soils.
"Here (in Galle) we have seen in the matches that were played recently, we saw there is a good bit of bounce which I would say is similar to playing on a red soil wicket (in India).
"So if you are playing somewhere in Mumbai, I think it is a little bit closer to playing in this part of the world," he stated.
(With PTI Inputs)
