Both times Shubman Gill has looked good with the bat in the recently concluded India vs Australia T20I series, rain has interrupted the game, and in the ones where the rain did not, Gill could not display his batting prowess. Gill managed to score 132 runs from five games. The Indian opener is left with question marks everywhere, according to former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra.
“Shubman Gill was batting really well in Canberra, and it rained. After that, he was batting well in the last match in Brisbane, and it rained. Rain came both times he was actually batting well. He looked to be in good form many times in this series, but those many runs weren’t scored,” Chopra said.
“This tour was like a damp squib for him, where it was expected that he would stamp his authority, but that didn’t happen. In fact, he has come back with just question marks everywhere. I, personally, don’t feel there are question marks. The home series will give us a little more insight, but the questions will remain because the Indian team plays cricket like that,” he added.
Gill-Samson conundrum
Earlier, Chopra slammed the team management for their muddled reasoning for Samson’s demotion from the opening spot since the arrival of vice-captain Shubman Gill and his subsequent snub from the XI.
“The biggest question that is looming large is – what have we decided about Sanju Samson? Sanju not playing is a big, big, big question as to why we are doing like that. We played Sanju and he had done decently as well. I won’t say he had done extraordinarily, but he was okay. You made him bat up the order against Oman and he scored a fifty,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
“If Sanju Samson were playing, there would be no confusion, but with Gill as vice-captain playing in all matches, Sanju Samson seems sidelined. Jitesh Sharma is seen as a better finisher at number five or six than Sanju, which works in Sharma’s favor. But because Gill is being groomed as a future captain and player, Sanju has lost his spot. Sanju’s record is excellent, strike rate of around 150. But they are backing players by the batting number position now,” Another former Indian player Mohammad Kaif said on his YouTube channel.
