'This group has hunger, passion & commitment to do something special': Gambhir's pep talk ahead of new Test era

In a video shared by the BCCI on Thursday, Gambhir and Gill addressed the squad in a pre-training huddle and laid out their vision for the five-Test England series, which will mark the beginning of the 2025–27 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) cycle for both teams.

Gambhir first welcomed newcomers Sai Sudharsan and Arshdeep Singh to the senior squad. "First Test calls are always very special, so I want to welcome Sai (Sudharsan), who had a fabulous last three months with the bat... I want to welcome Arsh (Arshdeep Singh), you have been phenomenal in white ball cricket. I am sure with a red ball in hand, you are going to make it count," Gambhir said.

The head coach further said that this squad has hunger and passion, which can make it a special tour, that signals the start of a new era for Indian cricket, following the Test retirements of stalwarts Rohit, Virat and Ashwin.

"All I want to say is that there’s two ways of looking to this tour. One is, we are without our three most experienced players or we got this phenomenal opportunity to do something special for the country. When I look around in this group, I think the hunger, the passion, the commitment to do something special.

"I think if we make sacrifices if we come out of our comfort zone, if we start fighting, not every day but every session, every hour and every ball, I think we can have a memorable tour,” Gambhir said.

Gill, who has been appointed as India’s 37th Test captain, added that the team should make sure each net session will be meaningful to find out how to play under pressure.

"Let’s make each and every net session meaningful and let’s prepare like that. And let’s put ourselves under a little bit of pressure when we are going out there. It’s not about going out there and surviving, let’s try to find out our game and how we are going to play when we are put under pressure. Be it our bowlers or batters. Let’s play every ball with a purpose," Gill said.

The five-match series will commence on June 20 in Leeds before the action moves to Birmingham for the second Test. The Lord’s Cricket Ground will host the third Test, beginning on July 10. Old Trafford and Kennington Oval will host the fourth and fifth Tests of the series respectively.