Indian Team newest recruit, Shubman Gill plans to take inspiration from the captain, Virat Kohli ahead of Napier ODI. As India and New Zealand set to face-off in the five-match ODI series, which begins on Wednesday (January 23rd); Gill said he was looking to talk and learn from the India captain. Meanwhile, he received a maiden call-up to the senior side; after KL Rahul faced suspension for his crass remarks on Koffee with Karan show.
I am learning from Kohli – Shubman Gill
The right-handed batsman had a decent run leading to his ODI call-up. One year back, the Punjab batsman starred with the bat in India’s Under-19 World Cup campaign; scoring 372 runs including a hundred against Pakistan in the semifinals. Later, he, under the leadership of Prithvi Shaw helped India lift the trophy.
In the following months, IPL franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders bagged his services for the eleventh season. Though he didn’t get to bat up the order, Gill still managed to hit 207 runs.
However, representing Punjab in the Ranji Trophy saw him gaining some significant numbers. In a game against Tamil Nadu at home, Gill completed his maiden double-hundred in the first-class cricket. The right-hander scored 268 runs off 328 deliveries.
Meanwhile, during the Australia ODIs, Rahul and Pandya faced suspension; thus ruling them out of the Australia and New Zealand series as well. In the late hours post the first ODI at the SCG, the BCCI named Gill and Vijay Shankar as their replacements.
Kohli changed the trend in the team – Gill
Crediting Virat Kohli for a change of pattern in the Indian team, Shubman Gill said he’s seeking for a chance to see Kohli bat. Also, on Tuesday, BCCI released a video of Shubman hitting the nets ahead of the first ODI.
?️?️#TeamIndia's latest recruit @RealShubmanGill was seen sweating out in the nets at his first training session with the Senior Men's team ?? #NZvIND pic.twitter.com/E8COH3Avnr
— BCCI (@BCCI) January 22, 2019
“I am really looking forward to meeting him [Kohli], having a chat with him, and closely looking at the way he practices for games,” Gill told kkr.in. “I think because of him, a lot of trends have changed in Team India. Fitness levels have changed for most players, and India is one of the best fielding sides in the world right now.
“All these things are very important. When your role is purely of a batsman or a bowler, it’s possible that two out of five games, you could fail to impress. So you need to find other ways to contribute to your team. These are really important aspects of cricket,” Gill said.