|| India Correspondent ||
After having a stunning tour in Australia, many found a dependable opener in Shubman Gill for India in the longer format of the game. He had scored 259 runs in 6 innings in the series Down Under which came at an average of 51.80, and his 91-run knock on the final day of the Brisbane Test played a crucial role in India's win at the Gabba.
He got the reward for his performance and was also added to the squad for the home series against England. But things didn't go in his way as he has struggled to get runs on the board against England. He had scored a half-century in the 2nd innings of the first Test, but since then, he could only manage 0, 14, 11, 15*, and 0. On Thursday, he was out for a duck off veteran pacer James Anderson in the very first over of India's innings.
Meanwhile, former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar said that the youngster is going through a "bad patch" and also added that Gill might be feeling the weight of the expectations from him as well.
"It's just a bad patch that anybody can go through. Expectations after the Australia tour were sky high, maybe he's feeling the pressure of those expectations," Gavaskar told India Today. "Also he needs to play a bit straight at the start of the innings, he is playing across the line at the moment which is getting him into trouble."
Gavaskar also praised India spinners who sealed the deal for India by sharing eight wickets among them on Day 1 of the 4th Test and bowled the England team out for 205.
"Indian spinners and bowlers have bowled really well. England players have not shown the application, determination required to fight it out despite the fact that the odd ball was turning. They were playing down the wrong line, they came in with lot of preconceived ideas," he again shared.
"Sometimes there can be a lot of theory talk in the change room, but at the end of the day that theory has to be separated from the practical - which is how you play each ball on its merit. I don't think the England batsmen did that and that's why they find themselves in this position. If they had even got to 250-60 I think they would have got to a good position," Gavaskar concluded.