India's bench strength is on display in their ongoing ODI series against the West Indies. The visitors have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series with two thrilling wins despite the absence of big names like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah in their lineup.
With captain Rohit not playing, it is Shubman Gill who is opening for India alongwith stand-in skipper Shikhar Dhawan. Gill has been impressive in the two matches, managing scores of 64 in the first match and 43 in the second. He is yet to reach the three-figure mark though but former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris believes that Gill can become among the best in the world if he continues to play at the top of the order.
“When he (Gill) plays for India at the top, I expect that average to be a lot higher because he is such a classy player. There are very few bigger fans than me of Shubman Gill. I have been very vocal about that over the last couple of years. I think he has the skills and the cricket nous to be one of the world's best,” said Styris.
{{/usCountry}}“When he (Gill) plays for India at the top, I expect that average to be a lot higher because he is such a classy player. There are very few bigger fans than me of Shubman Gill. I have been very vocal about that over the last couple of years. I think he has the skills and the cricket nous to be one of the world's best,” said Styris.
{{/usCountry}}Gill may have made his international debut in January 2019 but his career still in a nascent stage. He has played just five ODIs and 11 Tests thus far and is yet to score a century. However, he has come close on a few occasions in Tests and played an important role in India's extraordinary series win in Australia last year.
Styris was critical of Dhawan's efforts during the second ODI, in which India were chasing a target of 312. While Gill got going and scored 43 off 49 balls, Dhawan struggled and was dismissed on just 13 off 31 balls.
"When you look at Shikhar Dhawan's strike rate in this match, it wasn't great. They were off to a slow start, even when Shubman Gill was out, it was 60-odd after 15-16 overs, that's not a great strike rate when you are chasing 300 plus," said Styris. "It wasn't down to Shubman Gill, that's the key, his strike rate was nearly up to a 100, so he did his part. If Shikhar had done his too, this run chase would have been a lot easier for India."