Shubman Gill is in red-hot form as he smashed a century and then followed it up with a double ton in India's previous two ODIs played at home. Gill, who was picked ahead of Ishan Kishan against Sri Lanka, justified his selection with a superb 100 in the final ODI played at Thiruvananthapuram and made his case much stronger by slamming a double century in the first ODI played against New Zealand in Hyderabad on Wednesday.
The spectators thoroughly enjoyed Gill's scintillating show but what caught most eyes was the reaction by crowd when Gill came to field near the boundary ropes. In a video that has gone viral on social media, a section of fans can be heard chanting “Sara, Sara”, but Gill played it down with a nonchalant reaction as he simply waved the spectators.
Shubman Gill has been linked with both Sachin Tendulkar's daughter Sara and Bollywood actress Sara Ali Khan in the past. However, there has been no official word if the cricketer is in a relationship with either of the two.
{{/usCountry}}Shubman Gill has been linked with both Sachin Tendulkar's daughter Sara and Bollywood actress Sara Ali Khan in the past. However, there has been no official word if the cricketer is in a relationship with either of the two.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Gill's 208 off 149 balls saw him become the fifth Indian batter to enter the 200-run club in ODIs. Tendulkar was the first men cricketer to reach the milestone and he was followed by Virender Sehwag. Rohit Sharma then hit three double centuries before Ishan Kishan, who scored a superb double ton against Bangladesh in December last year.
Meanwhile, Gill also became the youngest batter to slam a double century in ODIs. Coming back to the match, Gill's efforts drove India to 349/8 in 50 overs, thus adding the much-needed pressure on the opposition. And so was the case as New Zealand lost half their side inside 25 overs but solid knock by Michael Bracewell and Mitchell Santner kept them in hunt. However, the tourists eventually fell short by 12 runs as India took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.