Gill skating on thin ice

Hyderabad: One of the major worrying signs for a smarting India as they head into the second Test against a confident England is the continued poor form of their future star and captain in the making — Shubman Gill.

Hailed as the one who would take over the reigns from Virat Kohli as the next big batting superstar, Gill’s Test fortunes have been plummeted alarmingly. The sensational start he made against Australia Down Under where he scored 259 runs in 3 Tests and played a pivotal part in India winning 2-1 is a distant memory now. Stunningly, his slide — his highest score in last 10 innings is 36 not out — has also coincided with his assumption of No. 3 slot from Cheteshwar Pujara, a responsibility he wanted as he felt he was more natural in that job than opening where he started his Test career.

The 24-year-old Gill’s lack of confidence, especially against spin bowling which is considered to be his weakness, was evident in the opening Test against England at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Playing with hard hands and literally plonking at every ball, Gill looked like a fish out of the water against an English spin attack — with no disrespect —  that was average at best in comparison to India’s. 

The likes of debutant Tom Hartley - although he ended up becoming the star with a sensational 7/62 in the second innings - Joe Root, Jack Leach and Rehan Ahmed are no celebrated spinners but Gill found even them tough to handle. If not for forward defensive push when the ball was pitched in the good-length area, his two other go-to shots were either the drive or the chip over midwicket. One of the chip shots cost him his wicket as he hit Hartley straight to midwicket for an uncomfortable 23 off 66 balls.

His stay lasted a mere two balls in the second innings as his prod off Hartley's tossed up ball, ended up in another offer to Pope at silly point who completed a fine catch. Gill trudged back disappointed after another failure at his favoured No. 3 spot.

Since the start of the West Indies away series last July when Pujara, an unsung hero of Indian cricket, was dropped and Gill was moved from opening slot to number three, the right-hander has managed a mere 142 runs in 5 Tests with a highest score of 36 not out. Both against the West Indies and South Africa he got off to starts as spinners weren’t in much play but he just couldn’t convert them, often falling to a loose stroke or lapse in concentration.

In India where tracks are on the slower side and don't help his go-hard-at-the-ball type of batting, he’s struggled to establish himself. In 9 Test matches at home, Gill has 440 runs with one century — a 128 that came on a flatbed in Ahmedabad against Australia last year. Barring that knock and a couple of half-centuries, Gill’s current technique has been found wanting on challenging surfaces — be it India or overseas.

Leg-spinning great Anil Kumble, speaking to host broadcaster JioCinema, too blamed Gill’s hard hands as the reason for his failures in India. “So, when you want to bat at No. 3, especially in India, because you have that talent, you certainly need to work on your game. He needs to come up with his own plan to tackle spin, because he has hard hands.

“It's good for good surfaces where the ball is coming on nicely and the faster bowlers are bowling at you. But when the ball is turning, when it's slow, you need to use your hands and control and check your shots. That's something he needs to work on. It can't be one flow all the time.”

Gill has four more matches remaining and judging by skipper Rohit Sharma’s words, he’ll be given the chance to rediscover his mojo. Following a great start to his career, he’s just accrued 1063 runs in 21 Tests (39 innings) at an average of 29.52. It’s not befitting for one of his talent and calibre. Apart from words of comfort, if head coach Dravid and batting coach Vikram Rathour can sort out his flaws with technical inputs, it could help the youngster stage a turnaround. Gill and India need it.