Ramiz Raja, the former Pakistan Cricket Board chairman drew comparisons between young Shubman Gill and his captain Rohit Sharma. The duo has formed a solid partnership as the new opening pair of the Indian team in white-ball cricket.
They have already shared multiple 100-run plus partnerships at the top as selectors have considered Shubman Gill as the opener for the ODI World Cup 2023 over an experienced Shikhar Dhawan. Shubman Gill made his case very strong for the WC squad with a magnificent double century against New Zealand in the first ODI to join an elusive list of players.
Ramiz Raja: Shubman Gill Looks Like A Mini Rohit Sharma And He Doesn’t Need To Change Anything
Raja said that Shubman Gill managed to conjure extra time while playing the ball which is exactly what has been said for Rohit Sharma for the past many years, suggesting that the young opener doesn’t need to change anything.
“Shubman Gill looks like a mini-Rohit Sharma. He has extra time and looks good. He has enough potential. Aggression will also develop with time. He doesn’t need to change anything. He scored a double hundred recently,” Ramiz Raja said on his YouTube channel.
Shubman Gill recently became the eighth batter to score a double ton in the ODI format. He 208 against New Zealand in the first ODI. Currently, the 23-year-old averages an astounding 71.38 in ODIs after playing 20 games. He has reached the triple-figure mark thrice in the 50-over format.
Ramiz Raja : Rohit Sharma Is An Amazing Striker Of Hook And Pull Shots But Indian Top Order’s Front Foot Batting Is Generally Weak
The former PCB chairman also talked about India’s dominant show in the second ODI against New Zealand and said that skipper Rohit Sharma made the chase look very easy. The Men in Blue bowled out Tom Latham-led New Zealand for 108 after asking them to bat first in Raipur on Saturday, January 21.
Rohit Sharma then smoked a 50-ball 51 as the hosts chased down the target with eight wickets and 179 deliveries to spare to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.
“Batting was easy for India because they have an outstanding batter like Rohit Sharma. He plays exceedingly well. He is an amazing striker of hook-and-pull shots, so a 108-run chase becomes easy,” he added.
Ramiz Raja further pointed out the Indian batters struggle while batting on the front foot.
“What India batters need to do, top order in particular, is the fact that their front-foot batting is looking weak. It’s easy to hit from the back foot, but once the ball is tossed up, you rely on defense, then there is some error,” he added.
In the 1st India vs New Zealand ODI, Shubman Gill blazed his way to 208 off 149 balls with the help of 19 boundaries and nine sixes to ensure India posted an imposing total. Shubman Gill averages an impressive 71.38 in 20 ODIs having amassed 1142 runs with 3 tons- one each against Zimbabwe (130), Sri Lanka (116) and New Zealand (208) and 5 fifties.