“Performance against England was a big confidence boost”: Shubman Gill

New Delhi [India], September 10 (ANI): Indian batter Shubman Gill said that his performance in the series against England was a huge “confidence boost” for him during a team when he was struggling to be consistent in the longest format of the game.

Gill was speaking on Jio Cinema on Monday. Speaking on JioCinema, Gill said that he had never played a five-match Test series before the home series against England, and his performance in the series helped him with his confidence.

“That was a big confidence boost for me, especially after losing the first Test match. Quite a few players were unavailable, so there was pressure on us to win the series,” said Gill.

“I had never played five Test matches before, so it was a good experience and exciting to feel that intensity. Even after getting breaks following two Test matches, we never dropped that intensity,” Gill added.

Gill, one of India’s premier white-ball cricketers, shot to stardom with an audacious knock of 91 against Australia at the Gabba back in 2021, which helped India hand over a rare loss to Aussies at their fortress after over 32 years and secure the series.

Though his white-ball numbers stayed largely consistent since his days in the 2018 U19 World Cup winning team, Gill battled inconsistent form in the longer format of the game following this breakthrough series against Australia, in which he had scored 259 runs in six innings at an average of 51.80 with two fifties.

After poor performances during the tour to England, the ICC World Test Championship final and the tour to South Africa between 2022 and early 2024, Gill’s place in Test side was questioned.

However, with a fine series against England at home, he was able to shut all the outside noise. In six Tests and 11 innings this year, Gill has scored 498 runs at an average of 49.80, with two centuries and two fifties. His best score is 110.

In 25 Tests, Gill has scored 1,492 runs at an average of 35.52, with four centuries and six fifties in 46 innings. In the upcoming ten Test match season, Gill will be aiming to score a massive volume of runs suiting the player of his class.

Gill recently led India A against India B in first round of Duleep Trophy, losing the game by 76 runs. In the match, Gill scored 25 and 21 runs respectively.

On the upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh starting from September 19 onwards, Gill cautioned that no international side can be taken lightly. He lauded Bangladesh for their recent clean sweep against Pakistan at their opponent’s home soil and the ability of their pacers and middle-order batters.

“I do not think you can underestimate any international side. The kind of cricket Bangladesh has played in the last couple of months, especially in Pakistan, has been impressive. Their fast bowlers and the way their middle-order batters have absorbed pressure should not be disregarded. So, I believe it will be an interesting and intriguing contest,” said Gill.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Sunday announced the squad for the first Test of the two-match series against Bangladesh at home starting this month, with pacers Akash Deep and Yash Dayal included in the team and the latter receiving his first call-up.

The two-match series against Bangladesh will be starting from September 19 onwards, with the first Test taking place in Chennai and the second Test from September 27 onwards in Kanpur.

India sits at the top of the ICC World Test Championship standings with six wins, two losses, and a draw.

Indian squad for first Test against Bangladesh: Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, and Yash Dayal.