Shubman Gill has put himself in the firing line for not converting starts into big scores.
Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra said that despite not firing young opener Shubman Gill should continue to open along with Rohit Sharma in the upcoming 5-match Test series against England.
Shubman Gill has put himself in the firing line for not converting starts into big scores. The swashbuckling batsman, since his match-winning innings of 91 runs in the Gabba Test, has scored a single fifty in his last five Tests.
In the recently concluded WTC final, which Team India lost by 8 wickets, Shubman Gill scored 36 runs across both innings. He, however, looked comfortable in the first innings as he defended well against the likes of Tim Southee and Trent Boult and scored 28 runs but failed to carry on the momentum as he fell to Neil Wagner.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra was asked by a fan if Team India would have been better off the opening with KL Rahul instead, replying to which he said Shubman Gill should’ve definitely played and backed the batsman to play the first Test against England.
He further said that it’s a right combination with Gill opening alongside Rohit Sharma because whosoever selects the team has to look ahead and not behind.
"Shubman Gill should have definitely played. I feel he should definitely play the first Test against England as well. Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma were the right combinations. It did not work out; if we look back the path always looks better on the rear-view mirror but whoever has to select the team has to look ahead and not behind," Aakash Chopra said in a video posted on YouTube channel.
Aakash Chopra further said that Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma opening innings for India in the WTC final was the right decision and it’ll be the right decision in the first Test match against England.
He added that even if Gill wasn't selected, the next-in-line batsman was Mayank Agarwal and not KL Rahul.
"Shubman Gill with Rohit Sharma was the right decision. Shubman Gill with Rohit Sharma will be the right decision for the first Test match also. I am going with what the team did. You couldn't have played him [Rahul]. Before KL Rahul, they should have played Mayank Agarwal. And now when you go ahead also, Mayank is ahead of KL Rahul in the pecking order,” he said.
With Team India set to play the five-Test series against England from August 4, it would be interesting to see who will open the innings alongside Rohit Sharma in the first Test in Nottingham.