Rookie starter says practicing against Indian bowlers on nets better prepared him for test cricket
On debut, Shubman Gill’s first two overs at the wicket were the kind that made Geoff Boycott ask his teammates to thank him for not coming out before the last ball of Michael Holding’s first in Jamaica.
First, Gill watched from the non-forward end Mitchell Starc launch high-speed, precision oscillating missiles just below driving length, but full enough to catch an lbw hitter. Gill saw that Mayank Agarwal couldn’t keep the last of them out.
Then he himself faced Pat Cummins for the first time in a test. Cummins with the new red ball on a spicy field is a very different proposition to Cummins at Kolkata Knight Riders. In one, Gill saw swing, joint, rhythm, bounce, and precision as if Test cricket wanted to tell him quickly how difficult it can be. In the first 17 balls Gill faced, his response was out of control eight times. On one occasion they dropped it. And that had nothing to do with his skill or inexperience.
It’s natural to imagine that Gill may have been amazed, but if he was, it wasn’t for long. He said having been with the test team for a few series before their eventual debut meant that facing this attack, arguably the best in the world, didn’t seem like a huge leap to him.
“I’ve been doing all my networking sessions and practice sessions and being able to play someone like Boom, Shami bhai, Umesh bhai and Ishant bhai in the networks, it is a great boost for the confidence of a young person “.
SHUBMAN GILL
“I’ve been traveling with the team for the last four to five test rounds, and being with the team has helped me a lot,” Gill said. “To be able to settle into the team. I’ve been doing all my net sessions and practice sessions and being able to play against someone like Boom [Jasprit Bumrah], [Mohammed] Shami bhai, Umesh [Yadav] bhai and Ishant [Sharma] bhai in the networks, it is a great confidence booster for a young person. Be playing a superior bowling attack on the nets. When you go out in a game, like when I went out to bat today, I didn’t feel like I was in a completely new place. It didn’t feel like a completely different level. “
Gill soon proved he belonged to the Test level with his tight defense and natural punching game coming to the fore. His control percentage of the remaining 48 balls in his innings was 83, which made his overall control percentage almost acceptable on such a pitch. I needed some luck, as you do in such conditions, but a couple of your external devices may have already been turned into GIFs. The first was to go off the mark, step up, and face Cummins with a straight bat. The second went to the third spin ball he faced. He jumped towards the three without any intention of hitting Nathan Lyon hard. He stroked the first through covers for two, defended the next time, and then only played a slightly brisk off-drive to rack up four runs. If you end the day on that note, it’s no wonder you feel like you belong when you leave for the second day.
“When I got in at bat, there was something on the field and the field was lively,” Gill said. “The only thing I said to myself was that no matter what is happening on the field, or what is happening around me, I should play my game and express myself and play with intention. That was my whole thought process.”
In the two warm-up games prior to Testing, Gill had shown a trend that was a slight concern. After entering, he used, at times, to play away from the body with only his hands. That’s what Gill did after he and Cheteshwar Pujara did all the hard work for almost an hour. This was the last ball of the sixth over of Cummins’ spell. It is quite possible that Cummins would not have felled another if he had not gotten the wicket. In that other ending, he also fired Pujara.
“The way I came out,” Gill said. “I’m not satisfied with my effort. That was the last ball of Cummins’ spell. I should have left it out. It was a loose shot at the time. Overall, my goal was to play with intention and form associations. I did that to some extent, but the way I came out made me feel really bad. “
However, a part of his job he did when the batsmen following him faced a slightly less threatening bowling alley with an older ball thrown by players who were not so fresh. India finished the day with an 82 lead with five wickets in hand, and Gill said they needed to make sure they didn’t give up and score all their runs in this inning rather than the fourth.
“I think in the fourth inning there will be … as you could see, even the first day there was a little twist for Ash. bhai [R Ashwin] and Jaddu [Ravindra Jadeja] bhai. And today you could also see that it was Nathan’s turn [Lyon]. As time goes on, the wicket will become more challenging for hitters. That is why it is very important for us to capitalize on the leadership we have and get them all out as quickly as possible. “
Sidharth Monga is assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
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