Shubman Gill may be Prince but he must build his own kingdom!
The debate around Virat Kohli being called the “King” and Shubman Gill being referred to as the “Prince” is an interesting cultural conversation in Indian cricket. At one level, it is harmless fan banter. At another, it reveals something deeper about how we Indians consume sport and construct sporting mythology.
The truth is that the labels are both appropriate and premature. Why appropriate? Because sport, much like cinema in South India, thrives on archetypes. We do not merely watch athletes. We assign them roles in a larger narrative. Virat Kohli’s journey over the last decade has earned him a place that transcends statistics. He isn’t just a batsman who scores runs. He became the face of Indian cricket’s most aggressive and self-assured era. He walked into hostile overseas conditions, stared down opponents, demanded excellence and redefined fitness standards. Whether one likes him or not, Kohli changed the culture of Indian cricket.
That is what kings do don’t they? They shape kingdoms!
The “King” label therefore is not really about centuries or averages. It is about influence and authority. It is about a player whose presence altered the direction of the sport in his country. Shubman Gill, meanwhile, represents something entirely different. He is elegance where Kohli is intensity. He is composure where Kohli is confrontation. He is the face of a new generation that has grown up in a far more professional ecosystem than Kohli inherited.
The “Prince” tag fits because Gill is viewed as the heir apparent and the next in line. The player expected to carry the banner forward.
But that exactly is also where the danger lies.
History tells us that succession is rarely straightforward. Sport is littered with “next Sachins,” “next Kohlis” and “future superstars” who never quite fulfilled the expectations attached to them. A prince becomes king not because fans declare it so, but because time, achievement and leadership make it inevitable. Gill’s challenge is not to become the next Kohli. His challenge is to become the first Shubman Gill.
In many ways, Indian cricket fans are borrowing a page from South Indian cinema culture. Just as Tamil cinema has its Thalapathys, Thalas and Superstars, cricket now has its Kings, Princes and Hitmen. These labels help create narratives that make sport more engaging. Broadcasters love them, social media amplifies them and fans rally around them. But unlike cinema, sport offers no script.
A hero cannot be protected by a writer. A succession plan cannot be guaranteed by a producer. Every season, every innings and every match becomes a fresh referendum. That is why Kohli remains the King. Not because someone awarded him the title, but because he defended it over more than a decade against the world’s best bowlers. And that is why Gill remains the Prince. Not because he lacks talent, but because the journey from prince to king is the hardest journey in sport. The moot point is that crowns are not inherited in cricket; rather they are earned. And if Gill eventually wears one, it will not be because he followed Kohli’s path. It will be because he created a kingdom of his own.
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