Shubman Gill He has been one of the most exciting batsmen to watch out for for India ahead of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Gill, who currently holds the third spot in India's Test batting line-up, has not looked at his best so far in this one series.
Being the No. 3 hitter for years he is himself, a veteran hitter Cheteshwar Pujara Knows what needs to be done to be successful in this role. Recently, Pujara spoke about 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 criticizes Shubman Gill for his constant failures
While speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, Cheteshwar Pujara opened up about Shubman Gill's struggles in the series. Pujara feels Gill's strong hands and lack of movement work against him and he needs to improve that part.
“He (Shubman Gill) has a strong hand. He has to work a little more on his footwork as well. Most of the times during this series, we saw him waiting for short passes instead of going towards the ball.” Pujara said.
Pujara also mentioned that Gill should be selective with his shots as playing too many shots will result in him being dismissed. He advised the young man to leave some balls out and be patient.
“There are some shots he has played that look very nice, but at the same time, he has to be a little bit more selective in the type of shots he plays, especially when he drives. He came out driving the ball,” he added. “It was off stump, so he has to “He leaves some balls and he has to be patient.”
“Hard Hands” – Pujara talks about why Gill doesn’t do these big tours #MARCHDAy #AShSagainstInD pIC.RThIRRep.CSM/8CVIpSCCSQ
– ESPNcricinfo (ESPNcricinfo) DeCeMforep 22, 2024
Cheteshwar Pujara tells Shubman Gill to be 'smart'
To break up the game plan further, Cheteshwar Pujara also asked Shubman Gill to bowl well instead of taking the overly aggressive approach. Pujara called on the 25-year-old to bat smartly and deliver spells.
“Look, I know he plays in an aggressive way. But (at) the top of the order, sometimes you just need to look at the ball, and try to play on the merit of the ball, rather than just having an extra positive mentality as you look to Playing more shots rather than looking at the ball and then trying to play accordingly.”
“He can't limit himself too much, but at the same time, one has to be smart. One needs to know that when the ball moves a little bit, you need to find ways to deal with those conditions and shifts. If he can see that, maybe “Once he is set up, he can score big goals.”
Shubman Gill's BGT numbers 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 average of 20 runs. Since his 91 in the last tour of India Australia On Jabba, Gil suffered from external conditions.
Shubman Gill replaced Cheteshwar Pujara as India's No. 3 after the latter was dropped due to poor form. Jill performed well in this position and was excellent in home tests. However, his record abroad has not been great and he is looking to improve on it.
