No camera flashes, no fans; Cold response for Indian cricket team in England

LONDON: The Indian cricket team, under new captain Shubman Gill, were in for a surprise when they arrived in England for a Five-Test series. The usual fanfare and rousing reception were amiss this time which left many wondering. One would have doubted if it was the elite Indian team after all. The absence of media and fans for the team is doubted to have come from the retirement of celebrated icons Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

This is the first time since 2011 that the Indian Test team has visited England without Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. In normal cases, media cameras would have surrounded the team, mostly to capture Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. It was evident when Kohli was surrounded by fans and media in Adelaide for the Australian tour last November.

The England reception has left many to presage the downfall of fame in Indian cricket which currently lacks any celebrity faces. Some others feared the imminent collapse of the test format of the game with two of the greats of the game hanging up their boots. It was after losing the two previous series that senior players like Virat, Rohit and Ashwin retired and left the team.

India lost the home series against New Zealand and the Australian tour last year. With this, they also missed out on the chance to reach the final of the World Test Championship. But the new World Test Championship matches will start in England. It will be a starting test for Gill, who is set to helm affairs for the first time with the national side. Experienced players like Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep, Arshdeep, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul and others are in the team.