Indian batter Shubman Gill was standing dangerously close to the edge of an abyss. The batter had a fantastic 2023, cementing his place in India’s ODI set up. He had a decent IPL too. However, doubts remained over him being a good fit in the Indian Test side. And Gill was doing nothing to allay those doubts, until today. The batter smashed a fantastic century on Day 3 of the IND vs ENG 2nd Test. While the century does not completely put him out of the woods, it is certain to provide some breathing space. More importantly, the century will ensure he gets a chance in the last three tests of the IND vs ENG Test series.
Shubman Gill in 2023
| Mts | Runs | HS | AVG | ST | 100s | 50s | |
| ODI | 29 | 1584 | 208 | 63.36 | 105.45 | 5 | 9 |
| T20I | 13 | 312 | 126 | 26.00 | 145.11 | 1 | 1 |
Gill was at his fluent best on Sunday, smashing the England bowlers all around the park. It seemed as if he had decided to tackle the balls farther down the pitch rather than waiting for them. That did the trick.
Shubman had been going through a rough patch in Tests. The batter had asked the team management to bat at number three, but he was not scoring runs. With an abundance of talent in India, every innings that failed to yield runs for Shubman only added more pressure . With India’s team announcement for the last three Tests coming soon, another slip in the second innings could’ve spelt doom for Gill. He delivered just when the water was starting to go over his head.
Shubman knew the importance of this innings, and he admitted that in the press conference after the day’s play. “It was very important for me to score at No 3,” Shubman said.
The batter was asked by the Indian team management to go and play Ranji Trophy if he faltered in the second Test. With the century, Shubman gets a little more breathing space with his selection virtually guaranteed in the Indian team for the last two Tests.
However, there is no guarantee of what his future in Tests will hold if he fails to maintain this form in the remaining three IND vs ENG Tests.
Editors pick
