Shubman Gill made his case strong for the opener’s role in India’s ODI team after smashing a record-breaking double hundred in the opening ODI of the three-match ODI series against New Zealand at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday (January 18).
Gill played a remarkable knock of 208 runs off 149 balls, laced with 19 fours and nine sixes, to play his part in Team India’s 12-run win over the Black Caps in the first ODI on Wednesday in Hyderabad.
Following his maiden double hundred in ODI cricket, former India batter Aakash Chopra heaped praise on Gill, saying he has put the debate about Rohit Sharma’s opening partner in the 50-over format to rest with his sensational knock in Hyderabad.
Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel: “He (Gill) has put that debate to rest about who should open. There were some discussions after Ishan Kishan's double century and there were some discussions about Shikhar Dhawan before that. It was even felt at times whether KL Rahul was batting at the right number but it is quite apparent now that Shubman Gill should open.”
He added, “He is meant to play ODI cricket right at the top. India have got two double centurions in the last one-and-a-half to two months. Ishan Kishan had struck a double century against Bangladesh and here Gill has struck it against New Zealand. He has done an amazing job, how well the kid bats.”
The former batter believes that the 50-over format really suits Gill, and the Punjab lad always bats beautifully in the format.
He noted, “Rohit Sharma was batting well at the start and Shubman Gill was playing slightly second fiddle to him. Although Rohit, Virat Kohli and Ishan Kishan got out, Shubman Gill kept on hitting from the other end. This format suits him the most.”
Chopra concluded, “When he bats, he does that in an extremely beautiful fashion. He is the fastest Indian to reach the 1000 ODI-run mark. That is also amazing and it deserves applause if a kid scores 200 in a team score of 350. He was hitting sixes in the end as though the match was being played on a video game.”
