Shubman Gill – a Regal Architect of a Brave New World For Indian Cricket
Shubman Gill: The naysayers and doubters may always remain. They may still offer uninformed views about the current Indian team and whether it’s indeed a powerhouse. But for as long as Shubman Gill plays for India, his batting will remind one of a truth that can no longer be denied.
It’s that Indian cricket is in great hands thanks to the generation that’s carrying it forward.
Shubman Gill’s clean striking, breathtaking timing and above anything else, positive mind-frame suggest that there’s little need to fear about the “what might” after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma walk into the sunset.
And that the current crop of talents are perhaps just as capable of forging their own special destiny akin to the Kohli’s and Rohit’s.
Rather importantly, it’s thanks to batters like Gill and Kishan that going ahead, the interest surrounding the current crop of talent representing India is only going to increase multifold.
If you think about it, you’d realise Shubman Gill’s batting embodies the sentiment echoed by the title of one of the most famous works by Alduous Huxley: Brave new world.
For the more closer you look at Indian cricket, you realise that it is a brave new world where the possibilities of achieving just about anything are endless.
Random speak or some exciting punt?
Neither. Just the truth.
Not long after he became the fastest man ever wearing the Indian jersey to reach 1,000 ODI runs that Shubman Gill’s decorated his hat with another feather.
This one’s just as colourful as his previous exploit.
In scoring 126 rollicking, freewheeling, but above anything else, thundering runs, Gill now holds the record for the highest individual T20I score by an Indian male cricketer.
As a matter of fact, Gill’s plundering of New Zealand in the third and final T20I resulted in the highest individual score by an Indian cricketer, whether male or female.
His record is one that attracts- and deservingly so- rich praise that you can never get tired of hearing or reading about.
Which is why even the most careful offerer of compliments, one who praises but economically, wouldn’t tire from applauding an effort that highlights the batter’s desire for humongous run scoring.
The other day, he scored a maiden ODI double ton, at Hyderbad, which in due process became the second double century for India inside five weeks.
This time around, he opened as he did back then, but carried his bat through to the end at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
That in the former, he fell only in the final over of India’s ODI inning was no less fabulous than his unbeaten effort at Ahmedabad.
Though, in reality, the one who fell a lot deeper into a rot of hitting made insufferable by Gill’s pure hammering was the Blackcaps outfit.
Moreover, that the lanky batter dominates the opponent by hitting a majority of his shots through to the fence makes Shubman Gill a hell lot attractive than what one supposes.
That 90 of his 126* runs came only through fours (12) and sixes (7) was quite simply marvellous.
As a matter of factly, Gill stroked 7 of his T20I career’s 12 sixes a few hours back and in the process of belittling the Kiwi bowlers also went past 200 runs in the format.
The white ball dasher who’s already proven his red ball credentials thanks to outings full of utility such as his Gabba fifty two seasons back is young with all the time in the world to further improve.
The good news for India is that Gill’s in the right frame of mind to make that top order position his thus further intensifying the spot ahead of the World Cup due to take place later this year in India.
The bad news for India’s opponents is that Gill’s all of 23 and he’s only just begun.
And may he go a long long way.
