"He is definitely your No. 1 opener" - Irfan Pathan lauds Shubman Gill's consistent performances

Irfan Pathan believes Shubman Gill has sealed his place as India's opener for the World Cup later this year.

Gill smoked 112 runs off 78 balls as the Men in Blue set a massive 386-run target for New Zealand in the third ODI in Indore on Tuesday, January 24. The hosts' bowlers then bowled out the Black Caps for 295 to complete a convincing 90-run win and a 3-0 whitewash.

During a post-match discussion on Star Sports, Pathan was asked whether Shubman Gill has proven to Rohit Sharma that he is the right choice as an opener, to which he responded:

"He is definitely your No. 1 opener. He is definitely your future star and you have definitely got your opener from the World Cup perspective. In my opinion, he is the biggest takeaway from this series."

The former Indian all-rounder pointed out that Rohit and the team management were already convinced about Gill being their opener ahead of the ODI series against Sri Lanka, observing:

"Rohit had got the proof before the series itself. He has said in the press conference that they had no doubts in their minds that Shubman Gill is their opener. Both against Sri Lanka and here as well, they had said that he is our future star and ODI opener."

Shubman Gill is in a hurry 🤩

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Ishan Kishan scored a swashbuckling double century in the final ODI of India's tour of Bangladesh. However, the Indian think tank opted to play Gill ahead of the wicketkeeper-batter in the subsequent series against the Lankan Lions.

"When you show faith, you get the results" - Irfan Pathan on Shubman Gill's excellent numbers

Shubman Gill was chosen as the Player of the Series for the ODIs against New Zealand. [P/C: BCCI]

Pathan highlighted that Gill had repaid the team management for the trust shown in him, saying:

"When you show faith, you get the results and you are getting the results regularly. Since the time he started playing ODI cricket, he is scoring runs extremely consistently."

The cricketer-turned-commentator concluded by praising the youngster for being consistent despite batting aggressively, explaining:

"What I like the most is that we talk about the average - no one who has scored 1000 runs in ODI cricket has an average better than him, he has an average of 70 - but that average has come at a strike rate of more than 100. If you add the two, it becomes a figure of 170, which is a huge number."

Shubman Gill has won 3 player of the series awards at the age of 23.

The future of world cricket. https://t.co/ftlxS4ntOI

Gill has amassed 1254 runs at an outstanding average of 73.76 and an impressive strike rate of 109.80 in 21 ODIs. His 360-run aggregate against New Zealand is the joint-highest in a three-match ODI series alongside Babar Azam.