India's Shubman Gill addresses a press conference ahead of the fourth Test cricket match between India and England, at the JSCA International Stadium Complex, in Ranchi.
Credit: PTI Photo
Ranchi: It was interesting to see what Rohit Sharma said about Yashasvi Jaiswal when asked to comment on his double-century during the third Test in Rajkot.
The Indian skipper was clear in wanting to play down the 22-year-old’s form, and the most obvious of assessments was that he wanted to keep the youngster grounded.
Besides the fact that there’s a long history of quality young talent veering after getting exposed to fame, Rohit is also aware that the likes of Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and others are the future. They then will eventually have the responsibility of carrying everything that comes with being an India cricketer. What Rohit is trying to instil, in inference, is a degree of equanimity.
Interestingly enough when asked about Rohit’s comment, Gill mistook the lines of questioning and went on the defensive. The query intended to find out if there is a conscious decision by the management to keep the youngsters grounded.
Gill’s riposte was: “The management doesn’t tell us to be humble. We know our roles and we will do it. See, in the case of Jaiswal, he is a phenomenal talent and he has done so much for India already, he has scored two double-centuries in seven Tests. That’s brilliant, but that’s not to say that he is not humble. And Rohit bhai maybe didn’t answer the question then because he didn’t want to because the time wasn’t right for it.”
The remainder of the press conference on the eve of the fourth Test was pretty practiced, as is the case with Gill.
When asked about Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, the India No. 3 said: “Of course, he’s a big loss but (Mohammed) Siraj has done well for a very long time. Even in the previous Test, he bowled his heart. That was amazing. I don’t think we will come up short.”
On the pitch itself, Gill had few inputs, saying it would play as well as any surface at the Ranchi has historically. “It looks a good wicket. It should play well. Obviously, there will be some turn, but that’s how pitches in India are always going to be. We haven’t spent too much time reading the pitch, but I think it’ll make for an interesting contest.”