Touted as India’s next batting superstar, Shubman Gill has lived up to the expectations of fans and experts this year, especially in white-ball cricket.
The right-hander played a key role in Gujarat Titans’ (GT) IPL 2022 triumph and also did wonders for the national side.
Shubman Gill was the Player-of-the-Series in India’s ODI assignments in West Indies and Zimbabwe. Still in his early days, Gill has amassed 570 runs from 12 ODIs at a remarkable average and strike rate of 57.90 and 102.65 respectively. He also has one hundred and three half-centuries to his name.
While most of his success has come as an opener, Gill on Saturday (October 29) said that he is ready for a middle order in white-ball cricket, highlighting that he has an all-round game and can rotate strike against spin.
The 23-year-old also mentioned that his century in the ODI game against Zimbabwe came at the number three position.
"My game all-round is very good and I rotate the strike well against spinners. So even if I get a chance in the middle order, I am ready for that. If the team management are looking at me in the middle order, then I am ready for it. When I scored that hundred in Zimbabwe, I was batting at one down, and I didn't open. So one down or two down, whatever the team needs, I am ready," Gill stated, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
"I believe that the fewer dot balls you play in T20s, the better your strike rate will be. Almost all batsmen have the same boundary percentage, but the ones with fewer dot balls have a higher strike rate. In T20s, you need to know what the bowler is trying to do. Those who bowl in a set way, you can dominate them," he further said.
Shubman Gill recently made his County Championship debut for Glamorgan and registered scores of 92, 22, 11 and 119 in three games.
Reflecting on his County stint, the Punjab lad said a strong start cannot be taken for granted in England.
"In England, you have to concentrate all the time. In those conditions, sometimes you feel you are set, but one spell can throw you off. It's not like that in India. Here once you reach 40-50, there is a pattern to bat. There is no such pattern in England. You could be batting at 110 and are still not set. No matter what score you are on, you have to be careful [on] every ball," he stated.
Gill has only batted as a non-opener in one of his 21 Test innings. He is also open to dropping down the order to gain more opportunities in the Indian Test team.
"The red-ball format is very important to me. You get a different type of confidence when you do well in red-ball cricket. I am ready to bat wherever there's a vacant spot in the side. I don't think there is anything wrong with my technique. When your concentration is disturbed, or you relax a little bit, and then if a good ball comes, you miss it. I think it always happens with me that I am batting well and then I get out," he remarked.
"There is no phase where I get out after I am constantly beaten. I think it [dismissal] is because of a lapse in concentration. When a batsman is struggling, he is more alert. With me, sometimes it's the other way round. I fail to keep my concentration going when I'm batting well," he concluded.
(With ANI inputs)
