Shubman Gill was one of the most exciting batters to watch out for India ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Gill, who currently owns the No. 3 spot in India’s Test batting line-up, hasn’t looked at his best so far in this series.
Being a No. 3 batter for years himself, veteran batter Cheteshwar Pujara knows what needs to be done to be successful in that role. Recently, Pujara opened up on Gill’s mistakes in this series and what needs to be done to score big in the remaining Tests.
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Cheteshwar Pujara slams Shubman Gill for constant failures
While speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, Cheteshwar Pujara opened up on Shubman Gill’s struggles in this series. Pujara feels that Gill’s hard hands and the lack of footwork are working against him and he needs to improve on that part.
“He (Shubman Gill) has hard hands. He has to work a bit more on his footwork as well. Most of the times during this series, we have seen that he is waiting for the short deliveries rather than going towards the ball,” Pujara said.
Pujara further mentioned that Gill needs to be selective with his shots as playing too many shots leads to his dismissal. He advised the youngster to leave a few balls outside off and be patient.
“There are some shots which he has played which look very nice, but at the same time, he has to be a bit more selective with the kind of shots that 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,” he added.
‘Hard hands’ – Pujara on why Gill isn’t making those big runs #MatchDay #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/8CVIrqCcos
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) December 22, 2024
Cheteshwar Pujara asks Shubman Gill to be “smart”
Breaking the game plan further, Cheteshwar Pujara further asked Shubman Gill to play to the merit of the ball rather than going the ultra-aggressive way. Pujara called for smart batting from the 25-year-old and play out the spells.
“Look, I know he has an aggressive game. But (at the) top of the order, sometimes you just need to look at the ball, try and play at the merit of the ball, rather than just having that extra positive mindset where you’re looking to play more shots rather than looking at the ball and then try and play accordingly,” Pujara explained.
“He 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 those conditions and spells. If he can see through that, probably once he is set, he can score big,” he concluded.
Shubman Gill’s numbers in BGT 2024-25
Shubman Gill missed the first Test of the series due to injury but played the next two Tests. He has scored just 60 runs in two Tests so far at an of 20. Since his 91 in India’s last tour of Australia at Gabba, Gill has struggled in overseas conditions.
Shubman Gill replaced Cheteshwar Pujara as India’s No. 3 after the latter was dropped due to poor form. Gill has been given a good run at the position and has been excellent in home Tests. However, his record overseas hasn’t been great which he will be looking to improve.
