Former India spinner Pragyan Ojha was not happy with the way opener Shubman Gill has gotten out in the ongoing ODI series against West Indies. India enjoys a 2-0 lead in the three-match series with the final ODI to be played on July 27, 2022, in Trinidad.
With many of the senior batters being rested for this ODI series, it has been a huge opportunity for the likes of Sanju Samson, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, and Avesh Khan who have gotten chances to leave an impact.
One of them is Shubman Gill, who despite looking good in both the matches and even scoring his maiden fifty in the format, has come under criticism for the way he has gotten out.
In the opening match of the series, he was run out due to a lazy piece of running between the wickets, and in the second encounter, he tried to play a Dilscoop that went horribly wrong and ended up in a return catch to the bowler.
This led to Pragyan Ojha slamming the Punjab batter and that he is way behind in the pecking order when it comes to opening batter choices in ODIs for India.
“You have three matches. Did you see how he was dismissed in the first two? I am not being critical. When you have such opportunities and the team has given you a chance from the first match of the series, and you have got a brilliant start... you have to convert it, and score a big hundred because he's not even the third-choice opener.
You're the fourth or fifth. How else will you climb up? You have to get those big runs. Gill is in tremendous form, He will have to think about... one, the way he was run out in the first match. Second, how he got out in the next game, that caught and bowled. It was not needed," Ojha told journalist Jamie Alter on his Glance chat show, The Alternate View.
Shubman Gill scored 64 and 43 in the two matches he has played and is expected to keep his place in the playing XI for the third and final ODI. Pragyan Ojha has advised Shubman Gill to make the most of the opportunities he is getting.
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Ojha further went on to compare him to Sanju Samson, who despite being talented has not gotten enough chances in the Indian team due to the presence of Rishabh Pant and Ishan Kishan in the team, along with KL Rahul as the wicketkeeping options.
"He will have to realize that these opportunities don't come easily and the best example for Gill is Sanju Samson. We all talk about his talent, but because we have got some good wicket-keepers he gets very few opportunities. If KL Rahul was fit, Gill would not have got these chances. You have got the chance, so you better grab it with both hands. He would be more upset because, he got the start and he also has to see that behind him, Ruturaj Gaikwad is also waiting and he has scored plenty of runs in domestic cricket," pointed out Ojha.
(Jamie Alter/ Glance inputs)
