“He has the potential to do that” - Dinesh Karthik on Shubman Gill finishing games like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma
Indian keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has stated that Shubman Gill would be disappointed to have not finished the match against Bangladesh after having scored a century. He, however asserted that the youngster has the potential to finish games like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
India went down to Bangladesh by six runs in the last Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 match at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday. Gill scored a sublime 121 off 133 balls, hitting eight fours and five sixes. However, India were bowled out for 259 in 49.5 overs chasing 266.
Gill was dismissed in the 44th over, caught in the deep as he tried to go after Mahedi Hasan. During a discussion on Cricbuzz, Karthik reflected on the timing of the batter’s dismissal and his choice of stroke.
“Yes, he would have ideally liked to finish it, but I won’t consider it a bad shot. On these kind of pitches, to play those shots consistently was always going to be a challenge,” he said.
Karthik added that Gill has passed a major test over the last year by proving that he can play all formats and opined that finishing games will be his next big challenge.
“He stepped up that part [playing all three formats]. He needs to step up one more part where he starts winnings matches like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma over the years. He has the potential to do that and he will definitely win a lot of games for India,” the stumper said.
Following Gill’s dismissal, Axar Patel contributed 42 off 34 balls, but he too fell in the penultimate to Mustafizur Rahman.
“In the white ball formats, he hasn't been at his best with batting” - Karthik on Ravindra Jadeja
While discussing India’s defeat against Bangladesh, Karthik opined that all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja’s struggles with the ball in white ball cricket are a cause for concern.
The 38-year-old admitted that Jadeja has been very good in red ball cricket, but has failed to replicate the same in the white-ball formats.
"And Ravindra Jadeja, for his batting. For some time now, he has been phenomenal in Test cricket, very very effective, and trustworthy. But in the white-ball formats, he hasn't been at his best with batting. He is a key player. Whenever he has done well for India, take the 2013 Champions Trophy, take any tournament India has done well, he has been a very critical performer and he needs to step up with the bat.
“In case, he doesn't have a great game with the ball, India can still manage. But if he is not scoring runs with the bat, it could be an issue for Team India," Karthik added.
Jadeja has registered disappointing scores of 14, 4 and 7 in three innings in the Asia Cup.