Former Indian Coach Ravi Shastri backed Shubman Gill to play ahead of KL Rahul in the Indore test. India has successfully retained Border-Gavaskar Trophy by hammering Australia in the first two matches of the series. Though India won against Australia, a lot of questions were asked about Rahul’s inclusion in the playing XI ahead of in-form Shubman Gill.
Ravi Shastri, in conversation on The ICC Review, praised the young Shubman Gill, According to him Gill should have been given chance from the first test and recalled the memories of Gill’s memorable performance in the Gabba which helped India to win the Border Gavaskar Trophy, then the coach of the Indian team Shastri said
“For me, it was a no-brainer. He would have been knocking on the door from the very first Test match and what makes me think is what I saw in Gabba last time. When we beat Australia in Australia, who got the runs? Shubman Gill. When we bounced back in the G after 36 all-out, who scored the runs in the second innings? Gill.”
India will take on Australia in the third match of the Border Gavaskar Trophy starting on March 1 in Indore. India is likely to bring in Shubman Gill in place of underfire KL Rahul.
How Is This Guy Not Playing? – Ravi Shastri On Indian Player’s Reaction To Shubman Gill’s Snub In First Two Matches
Ravi Shastri also reckoned not only the fans and experts were wondering why he was not selected in the playing 11, but even the players in the dressing room would also wonder how Shubman Gill is not playing
“When you have a player that confident, and with his performances of late and the way he has batted, there could be a lot of players in that dressing room within themselves, not just KL Rahul, ‘How is this guy not playing?’ I know that dressing room. I know they must be feeling ‘This guy has got it…it’s just a matter of time’,” he added.
Shubman Gill has been in the purple patch of his career and he has done a fine job as an opener so far — 689 runs in 13 matches at 31.31 and the majestic 91 at Brisbane. In ODIs, his last five scores have been 21, 116, 208, 40*, and 112.
Rahul’s last Test century came in December 2021 against South Africa. Rahul has been dealing with injuries for most of 2022 and struggling to find form in 2023.