Against New Zealand in Vadodara, Shubman Gill played like a man who was returning from an injury. The Indian ODI captain was bereft of rhythm at the BCA Stadium on January 11.
Chasing 301, he struggled in the power play. Kyle Jamieson troubled him with swing, bounce, and seam movement. The tall pacer beat Gill, hit him high on the bat, and made him play and miss. But luckily, he survived the early burst from Jamieson.
Shubman Gill fights hard against New Zealand
Just as the pitch was dying down, he got a reprieve against Zak Foulkes in the 8th over when Glenn Phillips almost pulled off a stunner at point. But from that moment onwards, Gill looked more in control.
He finally broke the shackles with a six down the ground to Adithya Ashok in the 13th over. Until that boundary, he had scored just 13 (27). But Gill still wasn’t at his fluent best. Instead of forcing it, he gave himself time. He relied heavily upon running singles and doubles with an occasional boundary.
With Virat Kohli in full flight on the other end, Gill decided it was wise to just change ends and let him work the magic. The move worked. Together, they added 118 runs in 17.5 overs. In the 25th over, Gill brought up his 15th ODI fifty, 5th against New Zealand in just 13 innings.
He looked ready for a big one. Yes, he took time, 66 balls, but with each passing moment, Gill looked better. After the 26th over, he felt something in his leg. The physio came out. It was clear that Gill was getting cramps. He got his leg and back worked upon.
After a couple of minutes, Gill was up on his feet. But the damage was done. The break broke his focus. The very next delivery he faced, a tossed-up full ball by Ashok, he chipped it to extra cover, where Phillips claimed an easy catch. Gill would certainly feel that he left runs out there.
But considering he was returning from injury and hadn’t crossed the 50-run mark in his last 7 ODIs, this 56-run knock was a positive for Gill and India.
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