"Shubman Gill looked like he belonged to international Cricket" - Glenn McGrath
Australian bowling great Glenn McGrath was all praise for the debutant Shubman Gill. He applauded the youngster's batting technique and said he was fit to play at the highest level.
His 45-run knock made Shubman Gill the third-highest Indian scorer on debut in Australia. The 21-year-old displayed his front-foot prowess on Sunday and carved many fluent shots against the Aussie pacers. Talking to Sony Sports, McGrath praised Gill for his innings.
"When I saw him the other day in the ODI, I thought he had a good technique, he looked like he belonged to international cricket," said McGrath.
"It was a pretty tough introduction to Test cricket there with the way Starc and Cummins were bowling, they (the batsmen) were playing and missing, there was that one edge that Labuschagne put down, but apart from that he looked pretty solid," he added.
Shubman Gill was dropped by Marnus Labuchagne who fumbled on a difficult catch in the slips. The batsman made most out of the second-life and played with aplomb against the new ball. He had ended the day with 28 runs.
Shubman Gill's knock bodes well for India
Melbourne witnessed overcast conditions on Sunday. Pat Cummins and Josh Hazelwood had their tails up and were stoic with their unwavering lines. But Tim Paine fluffed to grab a difficult inside-edge and gave Shubman Gill another chance.
The batter played a dazzling flick off Josh Hazelwood soon after. He struck two more boundaries on the day with inside edges.
Then in the 22nd over, after a barrage of good-length balls, Pat Cummins lured Shubman Gill with a full and wide delivery. He fell right into the trap and could only manage a faint edge to the wicketkeeper.
In the small package, Shubman Gill displayed exactly what India longed for in Adelaide. The debutant defended and left the balls with conviction and made sure to attack the loose deliveries.
The youngster's determination to score runs against all odds augurs well for Team India.