Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir will rejoin the squad in Leeds ahead of the first Test against England starting Friday (June 20) at Headingley. Gautam rushed home last Wednesday to see his ailing mother, a day before the four-day intra-squad game between India-A and the senior men’s team got underway in Beckenham.

The latest reports suggest that his mother’s health has improved since, and Gambhir will reach England on Tuesday (June 17), reuniting with the Test team in Leeds – the venue for the series opener.

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Meanwhile, in Gambhir’s absence, Ryan ten Doeschate and Sitanshu Kotak – the two assistant coaches, alongside seamer Morne Morkel, the bowling coach – took charge of the senior team’s preparation, with former India all-rounder and India-A coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar was at the other team’s dugout.

The game was played behind closed doors.

What did coaches and players have to say?

It is the first time since 2011 that neither Virat Kohli nor Rohit Sharma is part of a Test squad, home or away, as both announced their respective retirements from this format last month. Though their absence forced the BCCI selection committee and the head coach Gambhir to take some brave calls, including naming Shubman Gill as the new Test skipper, Morkel sounded confident of the team’s practice leading up to the Test series.

“There’s some quality energy in this group, and, you know, that’s what you need. You need to go into a Test series confident, you need to have that team spirit in the group, and I think so far they have done a great job,” Morkel said in a chat with bcci.tv.

Gill, however, received some backing from teammate and spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who praised him for having all the leadership traits required to guide this new-look team to greater heights.

“I have seen over the last three-four sessions that Shubman has the same qualities that I’ve seen in our previous leadership groups. He’s fully ready to lead us,” Kuldeep said after the conclusion of the intra-squad game.

Meanwhile, Gambhir would have plenty on his table to cater ahead of the first Test that begins four days from now. While choosing the top four would be the hardest part of his job, considering who fits better in which position, Gambhir would also have to pick the best quicks for the first Test, besides choosing between the three all-rounders, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur and Nitish Kumar Reddy.