"Shubman Gill played a very ordinary shot, no mincing words here" - Former India stumper slams No. 3 batter over dismissal in 3rd BGT 2024-25 Test
Former India keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik criticized Shubman Gill for getting dismissed by playing a poor stroke on Day 3 of The Gabba Test on Monday, December 16. Karthik said that Gill's manner of dismissal was unacceptable.
Responding to Australia's first innings total of 445, India went to stumps on Day 3 of the Brisbane Test precariously placed at 51-4. Gill was out for one off three. He played a loose drive to a full delivery angled across him by left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc. The right-handed only managed an outside edge, which was snaffled by Mitchell Marsh at gully.
During a discussion on Cricbuzz, Karthik slammed Gill over his choice of stroke. He urged the player to do some soul-searching, considering that he has been given the huge responsibility of batting at the pivotal No. 3 position in Test cricket.
"Shubman Gill has played a very ordinary shot, There's no mincing words here. For a No. 3 batsman, who has been around for so long, he's played a very very ordinary shot. I know he will go and look at it and say, 'no, that wasn't right. That is not acceptable by a team that is backing me to do well at No. 3'. Let's be honest, the Indian batting, as a group, hasn't fired for some time now," Karthik commented.
Karthik claimed that there's a technical issue with Gill, as a result of which he ends up pushing at deliveries. Elaborating on the 25-year-old's batting style, Karthik added:
"I feel Shubman Gill has definitely got a slight technical error, which is pushing at the ball. When you play a lot of white ball cricket, you end up doing that. Even a Travis Head does it, but he has found his method of doing that. Players like Shubman Gill are somewhere caught in the trap of the way they bat in India to the way they bat outside."
Apart from Gill, India also lost Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant for single-figure scores on Day 3 of The Gabba Test. The visitors trail the Aussies by 394 runs in the rain-hit Test.
Shubman Gill's batting woes in away Tests
While Gill is highly rated as a batting talent, he has struggled to make a consistent impact playing away from home. In 14 Test matches outside India (including neutral venues), the right-handed batter has scored 683 runs at an average of 28.45, with one hundred, which was scored in Bangladesh.
While the elegant batter averages 39.87 from five Tests Down Under, he has an average of 14.66 from three Tests in England, 18.50 in two Tests in South Africa and 22.50 in two matches in the West Indies.