Shubman Gill brutally exposed ahead of 4th Test of IND vs AUS Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Shubman Gill has struggled to make an impact on his tour of Australia so far, failing to convert his good starts into big scores, and the story is the same in the ongoing 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Reacting to Gill’s struggles, Dinesh Karthik believes a “technical flaw” and the influence of playing too much white-ball cricket are the reasons behind the Indian batsman’s failures in Australia.
Dinesh Karthik identifies the reason for Shubman Gill’s batting struggle
The former Indian wicketkeeper-batsman has pointed out that Shubman Gill’s tendency to push the ball, especially in Test cricket, has been evident in his recent performances in the ongoing five-match Test. series between India and Australia.
Across the three innings of the first two Tests of the ongoing 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the right-handed batsman has managed just 60 runs. He missed the first match in Perth with a broken thumb and then made 31 and 28 in the pink-ball Test in Adelaide, while he was dismissed for just 1 in the drawn Test at the Gabba, Brisbane.
Ahead of the Boxing Day Test, Karthik pointed out that when players focus too much on white-ball cricket, they tend to develop a habit of pushing the ball, which doesn’t work in Test cricket, and that’s why Shubman Gill is struggling. to race on Australian soil.
Shubman Gill has a small technical fault – Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik told Cricbuzz: “I think Shubman Gill definitely has a little technical error, which is pushing the ball. When you play a lot of white-ball cricket, you tend to do that (push the ball). Even Travis Head he does, but what he has found is a method to do it, and I think players like Shubman get caught in the trap of the way they bat in India and the way they bat away.”
In places like Australia, England and South Africa, batsmen have to adapt by playing with soft hands and focusing on playing the ball closer to their body or leaving it altogether, but Gill’s instinct in India it is to play aggressively and get the ball. , and he is playing that way Down Under and losing his wicket, so he has to change his mindset and approach.
Karthik further explained, “The moment you see the ball released from the bowler, your mind tells you that this is a full ball that you have to go for. Batsmen who travel abroad to places like Australia, England and South Africa adjust in practice when they see a fuller ball like this, especially against a new ball: they either A) play with slightly soft hands or B) try to focus on playing the ball so a near of the body or leaving it.
Shubman Gill is playing like he would play in India, where he sees the pitch and goes for the ball with hard hands. So, at the beginning of the innings, he will have to say to himself that ‘I have to leave’”.
Dinesh Karthik bats for India in BGT 2024-25
In the end, the cricket pundit emphasized that Shubman Gill has played very average shots so far in the Test series despite batting at the very crucial number three spot. He also said that the Indian batsmen are yet to fire in the ongoing 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and with each passing innings, they are putting pressure on themselves.
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