Shubman Gill was only 22 years old when he batted first for India against New Zealand in the inaugural World Test Championship final in June 2021. After Kane Williamson sent India in, he put up a good performance against a potent new-ball attack of Trent Boult, Tim Southee, and Kyle Jamieson. However, when it was critical for him to continue and build on that start, he was dismissed for 28. Converting his starts into something substantial has always been a challenge for Gill in his brief career, but in the last six months or so, he has shown significant improvement in that area.
Centuries in all three formats, including a world record double hundred in ODIs, three hundreds in IPL 2023, and the second-most runs (890) in a single tournament are proof of that. No surprise, the expectations for Gill will be much higher when India has another chance to win the WTC. This time, they will face Australia in the final, which will take place on June 7 at The Oval in England.
Gill will almost certainly open the batting with captain Rohit Sharma in the World T20 final. India’s batting lineup will largely remain unchanged from the previous edition’s summit clash, but the burden on Gill’s shoulders will be much greater to deal with the likes of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and others.
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Ricky Ponting, the legendary Australian cricketer who coached the Delhi Capitals for the last few seasons of the IPL, believes Gill will play an important role in the WTC final.
“He appears to be a terrific young man,” Ponting told ICC. “He has a bit of an attitude about him as well.” He exudes confidence. He has a lot of class.
The two-time World Cup champion captain believes Gill’s potent short-arm pull shot off the front foot will give the Aussie quicks pause.
“That kind of front foot pull shot that he plays against fast bowlers will probably be a shot that he’ll need against this Australian attack,” said the former Australia captain.