Sunil Gavaskar felt that up-and-coming youngster, Shubman Gill, was touted as the most promising youngster by many of his cricketing friends. Shubman Gill has also debuted for India in Tests and he also played a huge role in India’s famous win at the Gabba where Australia had not lost since 1988-89. He scored 91 at the top and set the platform up for the team following which, they were able to chase down the target on Day 5.
Over the last couple of years, the Indian cricket team management has handed caps to several debutants. From the likes of pacer Mohammed Siraj to middle-order batsman Suryakumar Yadav to opener Shubman Gill to pace all-rounder Shardul Thakur. There has been no death of promising Indian youngsters creating an impression for themselves, so much so that it begins causing a headache for selectors.
Sunil Gavaskar: Friends Who Played Lots Of Test Cricket Said Shubman Gill Is Most Promising Of All Youngsters
It was due to this immense depth in India’s bench strength that in August of last year, India fielded separate teams in two different parts of the world, with the Test specialist side facing England in the UK and the limited-overs squad touring Sri Lanka for six matches-3 ODIs and 3 T20Is.
“Shubman Gill has been somebody I had heard a lot about, particularly after the Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand. A lot of people who played a lot of Test cricket came to me and said look he is probably the most promising of all youngsters,” Sunil Gavaskar said during the documentary ‘Down Underdogs’ premiering on the Sony Sports Network.
Shubman Gill endured a lukewarm start to his India career. During the 2019 tour of New Zealand, Shubman Gill played his first-ever international game for India, and scored only 9 and 7 in the first two games. He would have to wait for over a year to play his next match for India. In December of 2020, he scored 33 against Australia in Canberra in a match which India won by 13 runs.
Shubman Gill Scored 91 In Historic Gabba Test Where Rishabh Pant Too Scored An Unbeaten 89 As India chased 328 Successfully In The 4th Innings
A month later, he would receive his moment under the sun, when he received his Test cap. Replacing Prithvi Shaw in the Playing XI at the MCG Test, the youngster batted with maturity, scoring 35 and 45 not out and followed it with a maiden half-century in the drawn Sydney Test.
However, opener Shubman Gill would preserve his best of the last. With India chasing 328 to win, the 22-year-old batter gave India a rock-solid start at the top-scoring 91, a knock which often gets overshadowed by Rishabh Pant’s brilliant 89 not out.
Needless to say, Shubman Gill became an automatic pick in the home series against England, but couldn’t quite repeat the same heroics like against Australia. In four Tests, he tallied just 119 runs with one fifty. He played the World Test Championship final against New Zealand without making a significant contribution before a shin injury ruled him out of the England Tests.
Shubman Gill will lend solidity to the Indian middle-order in the Tests against the Lankans when a major reshuffle is expected to force struggling Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane out of the Test team. The reshuffle is likely to happen in the wake of India’s shock 1-2 defeat against an unfancied South Africa.
India’s next Test assignment is a two-match series against Sri Lanka, starting February 25 in Bengaluru and at least two middle-order slots will be up for grabs. He has scored 558 runs so far in 10 Tests averaging 32.82 in his Test career. The former KKR opener has played only 10 Tests and 3 ODIs but is touted as a future star in the making.