Shubman Gill's latest MRF bat irks fans: ‘Sachin Tendulkar never wrote GOD, Virat Kohli never used KING’

Champion. Genius. Master. Legend. MRF bat stickers have used many adjectives to define their association with some of the greatest batters the game of cricket has ever seen. They stuck with Genius the longest. That's what Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli had on their MRF-sponsored bats. MRF has a history of signing the best batters of the generation. When they chose Shubman Gill to carry the legacy forward, it was a landmark moment. It also brought the spotlight firmly on Gill as, despite his outstanding ODI numbers, he was yet to stamp his mark at the Test level. Shubman Gill's new MRF bat sticker

“With legends like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, and Brian Lara having graced the iconic MRF bat, Shubman Gill now carries forward this tradition, inspiring the next generation of cricketers," MRF wrote while announcing the collaboration before the semi-final of the Champions Trophy earlier this year.

The purists looked at the Gill-MRF association with the corner of their eyes. Ahead of India's tour of England, which also marks the beginning of a new chapter, hopefully a glittering one, in Gill's cricket career as he takes over as India's Test captain, Gill's MRF bat sticker was once again in the news.

This time, because of what was written along with MRF Genius. After the BCCI released photos of Gill and other members of the Indian team sporting the new kits, netizens zoomed in to find the word Prince written on Gill's bat.

The Prince moniker was given to Gill as he was considered a superstar in the making but to use that in his bat sticker did not sit well with a section of fans. HT could not confirm whether it was Gill's decision or MRF's to use Prince along with Genius in the bat sticker but it definitely attracted eyeballs. More so because Sachin Tendulkar never used 'God' on his nat sticker despite being fondly called by fans. Neither did Virat Kohli put King on his bat sticker. The same with AB de Villiers and Brian Lara. In fact, Lara was the first to be known as a Prince in cricket.

Notably, the word Prince is not new in Gill's bat sticker. It was first introduced in the middle of the IPL but only came to prominence after Gill replaced Rohit Sharma as India's new Test captain.

In his first address as captain, Gill urged his players to "find out their game" and play "every ball with purpose".

"Let us make each and every net session meaningful and let us prepare like that and let us put ourselves under a little bit of pressure when we are going out there. It is not about going out there and surviving. Let us try to find out our game, how we are going to play when we are put under pressure, whether it be bowlers or batsmen. And let us make the practice match and each and every net very meaningful and let us play every ball with purpose," he concluded.

The series will be held from June to August 2025, with matches scheduled at Headingley in Leeds, Edgbaston in Birmingham, Lord's and The Oval in London, and Old Trafford in Manchester.

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