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Shubman Gill, India's new Test captain, is facing criticism for adding a "Prince" sticker to his MRF bat. Netizens question his self-proclaimed title and overseas performance ahead of the England series.
Team India batter Shubman Gill will assume his Test captaincy duties when the team takes on England in the upcoming Test series against England, starting on June 20. Gill succeeded Rohit Sharma as India’s Test captain following the Indian batting stalwart's retirement from the longest format of the game after he was sacked from the captaincy duties ahead of the England Tour.
Gill emerged as the front-runner for the Test captaincy despite Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, and KL Rahul being in contention for the role. At the press conference, BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed Shubman Gill will lead in Tests, with Rishabh Pant named vice-captain for the England tour. The Gujarat Titans captain, who led his team to the playoffs in IPL 2025, will be leading Team India through a transition phase in red-ball cricket.
Shubman Gill became the 37th captain and the youngest captain in the 21st century to lead Team India in Tests.
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Shubman Gill’s MRF bat grabs netizens' attention
As Shubman Gill prepares for the high-stakes England Test series, his MRF bat has grabbed the attention of fans and netizens on social media. The 25-year-old signed a deal with MRF ahead of the Champions Trophy 2025 clash against Australia in March. Multinational tyre manufacturing giant Madras Rubber Factory (MRF) approached Gill with a lucrative bat sponsorship deal, given his rapid international cricket.
After signing with MRF, Gill ended his long association with CEAT, whom he had been endorsing since the U19 days. The newly-appointed Test captain joined the elite list of batters who used MRF stickers on their willows, including legend Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Brian Lara, Steve Waugh, Rohit Sharma, and Shikhar Dhawan.
However, Shubman Gill modified the MRF sticker on the bat. The BCCI released a few pictures of Gill from his photoshoot, where he was posing with an Indian jersey, blazer, and the bat. The netizens noticed that the Punjab cricketer’s bat sticker, ‘Prince’, was written just below the traditional MRF logo. Gill was given the sobriquet ‘Prince’ as he was considered the next big thing in international cricket and as well as a successor to Virat Kohli, who is called ‘King’.
Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli used the MRF bat, but it was first time it was the first time a player personalized the iconic branding by adding a custom tag — with Shubman Gill inscribing ‘Prince’ below the MRF logo, symbolizing his rise as the heir to India’s batting throne.
Netizens call out Shubman Gill for ‘Prince’ tag obsession
As soon as the picture of Shubman Gill with the personalized 'Prince' tag on his MRF bat went viral, netizens were quick to react. The majority of the fans called out the newly-appointed Test captain for his obsession with the ‘Prince’ tag, claiming that Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli never played with a used bat that had ‘God’ or ‘King’, respectively, written over it.
Other sections of the netizens trolled Shubman Gill for his performance in the overseas Test, while questioning whether he had earned the rigt to carry such a tag before proving himself consistently in challenging conditions like England.
Shubman Gill has a decent Test record away from home, amassing 649 runs, including a century and two fifties, at an average of 29.50 in 24 innings. However, the 25-year-old does not have impressive Test numbers in England, scoring 88 runs at an average of 14.66 in six innings.
The upcoming Test series against England will be crucial for Shubman Gill, not only to prove his leadership abilities as India aim for their first red-ball series win in England since 2007, but also to establish his credentials as a reliable top-order batter in challenging overseas conditions.
