IND vs NZ 2026: ‘Indian captain appeared out of ideas’ - Ian Smith criticises Shubman Gill’s captaincy in Indore ODI

Published - 18 Jan 2026, 21:27 IST | Updated - 18 Jan 2026, 21:29 IST

Former New Zealand cricketer Ian Smith expressed his disappointment with Shubman Gill’s captaincy during the third ODI between India and New Zealand at Indore on Sunday. India got off to a promising start with early wickets from Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana, leaving New Zealand in a difficult position.

However, the hosts were unable to maintain the momentum as Daryl Mitchell and Glenn Phillips forged a brilliant partnership, taking the Black Caps to a commanding position. During this phase, Smith observed that Gill appeared out of ideas, as the Indian bowlers struggled to break the partnership.

In the death overs, KL Rahul was seen moving fielders around from behind the stumps, highlighting a lack of proactive captaincy on the field. Smith emphasised that it is the captain’s responsibility to remain active and motivate the team.

“I know that Shubman Gill is just learning the art of captaincy. But there's a lot, even now KL Rahul is chatting to Arshdeep down there as if to say, these are jobs that vice captains do. Shubman Gill is now coming down to long off, which basically takes him out of the play. You've got to be part of the action as the captain, particularly when your team is under pressure,” said Smith in the commentary.

Rahane, Zaheer question Gill for using spinners too late

Smith was also quick to note that for a young skipper like Gill, leading a side with veterans such as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and KL Rahul can be particularly challenging.

“I appreciate this as a young player. This is a hard team to captain because of the people around you within the group who have been former captains, most of them as well. You've got Rahul, you've got Virat Kohli, of course, you've got Rohit Sharma. You've got Shreyas Iyer, you've got senior players around you. And it's not always easy to take charge effectively,” said Smith.

Speaking about the match, New Zealand, after a shaky start, recovered strongly to post 337/8 in the ODI series decider against India, powered by brilliant centuries from Mitchell and Phillips.