'Ye U-19 nahi hai, maarna': Shubman Gill recollects being sledged by Hardik Pandya
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batsman Shubman Gill recently recollected an incident from a domestic one-day match against Baroda, during which he was sledged by Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya.
The youngster claims he was playing for Punjab when Pandya cheekily urged him to go after the bowling. In a video uploaded on KKR's Instagram handle, Shubman Gill narrated the funny incident -
"It was my first year of the Ranji Trophy season and we were playing a one-day against Baroda. And I remember Hardik bowling to me. He kept on sledging me and I don't know for what reason," Shubman Gill said.
"I tried to hit him on the up and the ball went straight to the fielder. Then he kept saying, 'Ae chal na maar na! Chal na ye 19 nahi hai ye. Chal na maar na' (Come on hit me, this is not Under-19 cricket, hit me!)," he added.
In the same video, Shubman Gill touched upon other topics, such as his all-time favourite bowlers.
"I love Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, James Anderson, Wasim Akram, Saeed Ajmal. I just love watching all of them," he said.
He was also asked if he prefers facing spinners or pacers, to which he quipped -
"If it's a green wicket, I prefer spinners. If it's a dry wicket, I like facing the medium-pacers," Shubman Gill added.
When asked about a record he would like to break over the course of his career, Shubman Gill chose one that is currently held by the great Sachin Tendulkar.
"I would love to break the record of most runs in Test cricket," the youngster said.
Shubman Gill's international career so far
After finishing the 2018 U-19 World Cup as the top-scorer, Shubman Gill was snapped up by KKR in the IPL Auction, and he has since cemented his place in the franchise's XI.
The 20-year-old made his ODI debut for India in January 2019 but hasn't been given an extended run of games. He has also made the Test squad on occasions but is yet to feature for India in the longest format of the game.
Hardik Pandya, on the other hand, is always one of the first names on the Indian team-sheet in the limited-overs formats. He has firmly established himself as the lead all-rounder for both India and his IPL team Mumbai Indians. The 26-year-old has played 54 ODIs for India so far and averages just a shade under 30 at an impressive strike rate of 115.57.