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Watch: Gill astounded, Kohli left perplexed at Maharaj's unbelievable ball; confused umpires forced to refer upstairs
Keshav Maharaj outfoxed Shubman Gill with an incredible delivery that shattered his off-stump.
Team India enjoyed an electrifying start after opting to bat against South Africa in their eighth match of the 2023 World Cup group stage in Kolkata. Rohit Sharma, the Indian captain, attacked the Proteas pacers early into the game, racing to 40 off just 24 balls before being dismissed by Kagiso Rabada. Shubman Gill, then, looked solid as he adopted the aggressor role; however, Keshav Maharaj cut short Shubman's innings with a stunning delivery that even left Virat Kohli, the batter at the non-striker end, perplexed.
Gill appeared utterly flabbergasted – a sentiment shared by both on-field umpires – prompting them to ask the third umpire to intervene in the decision. It was a flighted ball from Maharaj, delivered with a slower pace, and it cunningly drifted in from the outside leg. As Shubman Gill moved forward, the ball enticed him, only to then deceive him by sharply spinning past the outside edge. Gill was caught off guard by the ball's trajectory, dip, and the turn, resulting in it clipping the top of off-stump.
Upon reviewing the replays, the initial assessment was confirmed as the ball certainly did hit the stump, and Gill had to depart.
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On many occasions throughout the World Cup, Gill had enjoyed solid starts but failed to convert them. Against Pakistan, the Indian youngster raced to 16 with four solid fours before conceding his wicket to Hasan Ali. He scored 26 against New Zealand and 9 against England, but did produce a strong performance in India's last game against Sri Lanka, scoring a quickfire 92.
India are already through to the semi-finals of the tournament with seven wins in as many matches, and remain the only unbeaten side. South Africa, meanwhile, are just as menacing but did face a shock loss to Netherlands; with six wins in seven games, they are second and became the second team to book a semis berth on Saturday.
India will, however, look to retain their top spot with a win over the Proteas on Sunday, and then enjoy an unbeaten run in the group stage with their final game against Netherlands on November 12.
