India’s star opener Shubman Gill has been batting brilliantly in the ongoing fourth and final Test of the series against Australia. Gill stitched a 74-run stand with the skipper Rohit Sharma for the first wicket. He took 89 balls to get to his half-century, putting India in a commanding position. The Punjab-based batter did not have a great third Test as he got the chance in the playing XI in place of Kl Rahul. He scored 21 and 5 in both innings of the Indore Test.
However, Gill after scoring a half-century in the Ahmedabad Test received a lot of appreciation from fans and former players. Cricketer turned commentator Sunil Gavaskar made a huge remark about the 23-year-old opener.
During a conversation on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, “He has a lot of time. When he plays a defensive shot, the way he bends forward, even against Mitchell Starc… he presents a straight face of the bat and plays a forward defence, it was so pleasing to see. It shows that he has confidence. He doesn't only play on the back foot. His foot moves forward and he has a solid defence, not just a solid attack. And in Test cricket, you need that”.
“Shuffling back and forth against pace bowlers isn't very easy. But he picks the lines and lengths really well. Kisi bhi ballebaaz ke paas agar time ho, usne agar apne career ko sambhaala, toh aage jaake 8-10,000 run aaram se kar lega (If a batter has time, if he keeps his career in the right direction, he can easily score 8-10,000 runs in Tests),” Gavaskar further added.
Earlier, Gill played a terrific knock of 91 runs and played a crucial role in India’s win at the Gabba back in 2021. In 15 Tests, Gill has a wholesome average of 33.08 with a hundred and five half-centuries to his kitty so far. Currently, in reply to Australia's 480, India are batting at 175/1 with Gill scoring 91 and Pujara on 41.