Cheteshwar Pujara, Shubman Gill, Marnus Labuschagne and David Warner.
Cheteshwar Pujara, Shubman Gill, Marnus Labuschagne and David Warner. Image Credit: X

Shubman Gill was going through a rough patch in the longest format of the game at the start of the year before his twin centuries against England cemented his spot. On the very first Test of their home season against Bangladesh in September, the number three batter smashed another century against Chennai. The expectation was huge from the youngster on his second trip to Australia for the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.

Shubman Gill missed the opening Perth Test with an injury before returning to the day-night affair at the Adelaide Oval. The right-handed batter looked in a supreme touch during their practice game at the Manuka Oval, where he smashed an unbeaten 50-run knock at a strike rate of over 80. Even in the main contest, he looked decent for his 31 runs in the first innings before missing the straight delivery from Scott Boland.

In the second innings, the Punjab-born had a terrific start with 28 balls in 29 deliveries before a late swinging delivery from Shubman Gill uprooted the stumps of the batter to send him back. The biggest worry for the fans was to see him chasing a seventh stump delivery in the lone innings at the Gabba, Brisbane.

“Play the ball at its merit”- Cheteshwar Pujara guides Shubman Gill

In the ongoing year, Shubman Gill has smashed 866 runs in 22 innings at an average of 43.30 with a strike rate of 62, shouldering on three fifties and as many centuries. But in the ongoing BGT, he has collected 60 runs at 20.

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The veteran Indian number three in Tests, Cheteshwar Pujara, has given a strong view on the struggling technique of the 25-year-old, who, according to the Saurashtra batter, has been going with a hard hand and poor footwork.

“Well, his technique (is the issue). He has hard hands, and he has to work a bit more on his footwork as well. Most of the time during the series, we have seen that he has been waiting for the short deliveries rather than going towards the ball.” Pujara expressed this during an interaction on ESPNcricinfo.  

“And there are some shots which Shubman Gill has played that looked very nice, but at the same time, he has to be a bit more selective with the kind of shots he is playing, especially when he is driving. He got out driving the ball, which was outside the off-stump. So, he has to leave a few balls, and he has to be patient.” The experienced top-order batter for India explained.  

The two-time BGT winner for the Blue Brigade reckoned that even though Shubman Gill has carried an aggressive game plan, the need of the hour for him would be to play the deliveries at their merit.

“Look, I know he has an aggressive game, but at the top of the order, you just sometimes need to look at the ball and try to play at the merit of the ball rather than having that extra positive mindset where you are looking to play more shots, rather than looking at the ball and then try and play accordingly.” Pujara shed light.  

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“Shubman Gill can’t restrict himself too much, but at the same time, one has to be smart. One needs to know that when the ball is doing a bit, you need to find ways to deal with the conditions and deal with those spells. And if he can see through that, probably when he is set, he can score big.” The experienced Indian batter to play over 100 Tests concluded.

Time is running out, even for the future star. With an average of 35.77 in 31 Tests, he is lucky to be on the Indian side. The last two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney could prove to be his final two golden opportunities.