Indian team management backs Shubman Gill to be the next big thing

Punjab’s young top-order batsman Shubman Gill’s mature show in the recent New Zealand tour has won him the confidence of the Indian team management. The 20-year-old Gill, who is marked for bigger deeds in the years to come, is also backed to make the cut for the Test series against Australia later this year. The management is backing the youngster and may not mind putting him ahead of some of the seniors.

Indian Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara still have a lot of cricket left in them and are a surety for the next Test series but the management is also ready to back youngsters and take those tough calls if such a situation arises. There is already a lot of pressure on the team to perform and the only way out is to try out different combinations and permutations. In such a scenario, Gill fits the bill.

Indian coach Ravi Shastri was recently quoted as saying: "Shubman is a very exciting talent and I saw him batting in the nets and I was like wow. I was not even 10 per cent of what he is when I was nineteen."

Even former Australian player Tom Moody made it clear that Gill is the next big thing in Indian cricket.

Gill, who is coached by his father, can open the innings and also bat in the middle-order. This flexibility makes him even more valuable for the Team Management, which won't mind trying him in other formats of the game too.

"He has an IPL contract too and his team KKR too rates him highly," a source said.

Gill also has proven leadership qualities. He was the U-19 team vice-captain in the 2018 World Cup. Gill batted at No.3 to help India win the title. He was also the player of the tournament and is remembered for his unbeaten 102 against Pakistan in the semifinal game.