‘Right up there with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan’: NZ great's bold take on India youngster Shubman Gill
Reacting to Gill's emergence as a prominent white-ball opener, New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris said the right-hander has a few holes in his technique but would be right up there with Rohit, Rahul and Dhawan as an opener.
With KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Ishan Kishan, and Ruturaj Gaikwad already jostling to partner Rohit Sharma as the second opener in India's ODI side, few would have rated Shubman Gill as another possible candidate. The talented right-hander has been fairly regular in India's Test XI for the last 18 months or so but was never given proper opportunities in limited-overs cricket until the recent West Indies series. Gill grabbed that opportunity with both hands, emerging as the highest run-scorer of the three-match series with 205 runs at an average and a strike rate of 102.50. Reacting to Gill's emergence as a prominent white-ball opener, former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris said the right-hander has a few holes in his technique but would be right up there with Rohit, Rahul and Dhawan as an opener.
"I still think there are holes in his game. I think there are holes in his technique that the opposition will look to exploit, but he's got all the skills and the other component. What makes a World class player is their mental thought process and their maturity and leadership. And I think he has that as well. And for that reason, yes you're quite right you can keep him up there with the Rohits, KL Rahuls and Shikhars in terms of openers,” Styris said Sports18’s show ‘Sports Over The Top’.
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Sharing his thoughts on the same former India wicketkeeper-batter Saba Karim, who was a member of India's selection committee not too long ago, said Gill can end up leading one of the IPL teams if he continues to grow in the next couple of years.
“I think it's good to get some kind of experience. And I feel one year, two year around the line we may see Shubman elevated to lead one of these on the India T20 league. And I think once he gets that kind of experience, in addition, he can manage to lead Punjab in the domestic level that will really board well for him. So, he will gain experience and as you rightly said, he has shown some leadership skills. So that will really do well for Shubman Gill in future,” added Karim.
Gill can also fit in quite well at number three and number four in the white-ball cricket, said Karim.
“I look at him as a versatile player because at this stage, one has seen him bat so well for India as an opener. But given the opportunity, I'm sure he can do well at number three, number four and I think mostly in the T20 format, you look at players who can bat number one, number two and number three. So, I think in that kind of a mould, Shubman Gill can fit in quite easily,” he added.
