Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag has criticized Shubman Gill's captaincy after the Gujarat Titans faced a disappointing defeat in their IPL 2025 opener against the Punjab Kings. Chasing a mammoth target of 244, the Gujarat Titans fell short by 11 runs despite a spirited effort. Punjab Kings were powered by a remarkable unbeaten 97 from Shreyas Iyer, a solid 47 from Priyansh Arya, and a quickfire 44 not out by Shashank Singh, which took them to a total of 243/4. However, Sehwag was unimpressed with Gill's decisions on the field, particularly his handling of the bowling attack. The former opener questioned the logic behind introducing Arshad Khan when Mohammed Siraj was bowling well. He also criticized Gill’s decision to hold Siraj back for the death overs instead of capitalizing on his early momentum. "I thought that Shubman Gill's captaincy was not up to the mark; he was not ready, he was not proactive. When Siraj was bowling well, he brought on Arshad Khan, who I think conceded 21 runs in the powerplay, and that over changed the momentum," Sehwag said on Cricbuzz. He further pointed out how using Siraj differently could have changed the outcome. "If Siraj is bowling well with the new ball, there is no point holding him back for the death overs, and you see he also got hit in the end," he added. "We conceded too many runs in the back end" Siraj, who made his debut for Gujarat Titans in the match, started well, conceding only 14 runs in his first two overs. However, instead of continuing him, Gill introduced Arshad Khan, which proved costly. PBKS opener Arya quickly seized the opportunity, smashing four boundaries and shifting the momentum in Punjab’s favor. Also Read: 'Ishan Kishan was overshadowed in MI': Sanjay Bangar When Gill finally brought Siraj back in the death overs, Shashank Singh took full advantage, hammering him for multiple boundaries. Siraj finished with disappointing figures of 0/54 in four overs. Sehwag pointed out the importance of proactive leadership in such situations. "A captain should have the proactive-ness to know that if one of his bowlers is doing well, he should have an extended spell," he added. Reflecting on the loss, Shubman Gill acknowledged the team's mistakes. "We got our chances when we were bowling and batting. Too many runs we conceded in the back end of the innings. Those three overs in the middle, we scored around 18 runs. That, and our first three overs, we didn't score many runs. That cost us the game," Gill said during the post-match presentation. Gujarat Titans will have an opportunity to bounce back when they face Mumbai Indians, led by Hardik Pandya, on March 29 at Ahmedabad. All eyes will be on Gill to see how he responds to the criticism.