Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel has expressed concerns about Shubman Gill’s batting approach in the first Test against England in Hyderabad. Gill, who scored only 23 runs across two innings, faced criticism from Patel for not attempting to play shots during the match, which ended in a 28-run defeat for India on Sunday, December 28.
During an analysis on Colors Cineplex, Patel highlighted Gill’s lack of intent to score runs and emphasized that international-level bowlers wouldn’t provide loose deliveries if a batsman refrains from playing attacking shots.“The way Shubman Gill was batting, especially the approach we saw in the first innings, he wasn’t trying to play shots at all. If you don’t try to score runs, international-level bowlers won’t give you too many loose deliveries,” commented Patel.
In addition, Patel pointed out a significant technical flaw in Gill’s defensive technique, noting that he tends to defend with hard hands. He stressed the importance of rotating the strike, which Gill failed to address in both innings.
You will have to show your skills there. It’s fine if you are not hitting fours, you need to rotate the strike at least. If we talk technically as well, he defends with extremely hard hands. He needs to see how he can work on that,” added Patel.
Despite India’s loss in the first Test, pundits and cricketers believe that the hosts remain favorites in the five-match series. The aggressive “Baseball” style of play by England, devised by coach Brendon McCullum and skipper Ben Stokes, led to their victory in the opening match. However, India had been ahead for most of the initial three days of the Test.
