Former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen picked one batter to be the standout performer in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024 and put his bets on an Indian batter. The T20 World Cup will be played in June in the West Indies and the USA.
The England cricketer, who was the Player of the Tournament when the T20 World Cup was last played in the Caribbean in 2010, picked India’s Shubman Gill to be the best performer in the upcoming edition of the T20 extravaganza.
But it has been tough going for Shubman Gill in recent times. In his last 11 Test innings, Gill has not been able to breach the 50-run mark. Though he had an excellent outing in the ICC World Cup 2023, his Test results have been found wanting.
With Yashasvi Jaiswal opening the innings along with skipper Rohit Sharma, Gill has now been slotted in the number three position. He scored 23 and 0 in the first Test against England in Hyderabad and there is a sword hanging on his position with Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan waiting for their chance.
Pietersen has backed Gill to produce an impressive performance in the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup, scheduled to be played later this year in June. He predicted that Gill could very well be a star performer in the competition.
“It is Shubman Gill. He is the guy,”- Kevin Pietersen said to Times of India.
Shubman Gill will have the IPL 2024 to finetune his batting. However, he will have the additional responsibility of captaining the Gujarat Titans this IPL season after Hardik Pandya moved to Mumbai Indians.
It is also been said that Gill’s performances with the bat and his leadership skills will be closely monitored with the T20 World Cup in mind.
Pietersen had won the Player of the Tournament award in the 2010 T20 World Cup, scoring 248 runs including the knock of 47 off 31 balls against Australia in the final. Recalling that event, Pietersen stated that winning the silverware in 2010 was quite special.
“Winning the World Cup in the Caribbean against Australia in the middle of the Barbados crowd was very special,” the 43-year-old said.
