Indian captain Shubman Gill confirms openers and No. 3 batter for 1st T20I vs Zimbabwe
Shubman Gill, India's captain for the five-match T20I series in Zimbabwe, has confirmed that he will open the batting with Abhishek Sharma in the first match, while Ruturaj Gaikwad will bat at No. 3.
The Men in Blue will take on Zimbabwe in a five-match T20I series from July 6 to July 14. All five matches will be played at the Harare Sports Club and will start at 4:30 PM IST.
Speaking on the eve of the first T20I, Gill confirmed India's openers for the match. Responding to a query on the team combination, he said:
"Abhishek Sharma will open with me and Ruturaj Gaikwad will bat at No.3."
Abhishek had a fantastic IPL 2024 season for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). In 16 matches, he clobbered 484 runs at a strike rate of 204.22, which included three half-centuries, as SRH finished runners-up in IPL 2024, going down to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final.
Leading Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Gaikwad contributed 583 runs in 14 matches at an average of 53 and a strike rate of 141.16, with one hundred and four fifties. Despite his impressive efforts, CSK could not reach the playoffs. Gill, who was among the reserves for the 2024 T20 World Cup, scored 426 runs in 12 matches for Gujarat Titans (GT), averaging 38.73 at a strike rate of 147.40.
Gill stated that he has learned some lessons while leading GT in the IPL and is confident that the experience would come in handy.
"A lot of lessons. When I captain for the first time for my IPL team, I got to know a lot more things about myself and a lot more things about the leadership perspective. And I felt most of the challenges that you face as a captain are more mental," the right-handed batter said.
Gujarat Titans struggled in IPL 2024, finishing eighth in the points table. They won five and lost seven matches, while two games produced no result.
"What Kohli and Sharma have achieved, if I go after reaching it then it will be difficult" - Gill
During the pre-match press conference, Gill also opened up on the pressure of carrying forward the legacy of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. He stated that he has his own individual goals and is not looking to match the two legends.
“Pressure and expectations are always there. But I think what Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have achieved, if I go after achieving or reaching it then it will be difficult. Every player has his individual goals where he wants to reach so that pressure itself is there. And if your’re looking to reach where someone has already achieved then you’re under even more pressure,” the elegant batter stated.
The series in Zimbabwe begins just a week after the Indian team's T20 World Cup triumph in Barbados. Most of the players from that squad have been rested, while a few of the seniors have retired.
Gill is confident that the newcomers will learn a lot from the tour and that the experience will stand them in good stead.
"It's quite a different team from the one that played in the World Cup. There are a lot of young players in the team, including myself. So I think in terms of that, we just want to give the players experience and how the international, what it is like to play at the international level because a lot of the players haven't played that many matches and some of the players haven't even made their debut," he said.
"So I think that is our aim for the series, to give them more international exposure and experience," the Indian captain for the tour concluded.
Gill, 24, has played 14 T20Is and has scored 335 runs at an average of 25.76 and a strike rate of 147.57, with one hundred and one fifty.