Youngster Shubman Gill has featured in 7 Test matches for India after making his debut last year against Australia in Melbourne. In all those innings, he remembers his partners taking the strike on the first ball, except for once against England which didn't go well.
The India opener played three matches on the Australia tour and then got an opportunity in the four-match Test series against England at home. Gill is going to be a part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand. But we aren't expecting him to take the strike on the first ball there.
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The 21-year-old, in a conversation with The Grade Cricketer, revealed he wouldn't take the strike on the first ball anytime soon after being bowled for a three-ball duck in the second Test against England earlier this year.
When asked about taking the strike on the first ball, he replied, "Never! I remember in my debut innings that Mayank was kind enough to say 'Okay, I know you are under pressure so I will take the strike' and he took the strike in both innings. And then in the next match, I was supposed to take the strike but Mayank didn't play, Rohit bhai (Rohit Sharma) played."
"Rohit himself said: 'I know you are a youngster, so I will take the strike.' From there on, he took the strike every game until that match against England. I don't know why I told him that I will take the strike and obviously, that didn't work for me, I got out on the 3rd or 4th ball on a duck. But yes, that won't happen again anytime soon."
Gill was also asked when do he and his opening partner Rohit decide who would take the strike, and he responded, "Honestly, it can happen anytime. Like once, I remember we were almost in the middle, we were tapping our bats and I asked Rohit 'Can you please take the strike?'. Because Mitchell Starc was going on his run-up and I was trying to search the non-striker's end."
Team India will play the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand in Southampton from June 18-22.
(With The Grade Cricketer Inputs)
