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File image of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill.© AFP
Shubman Gill has an invincibility cloak hung around his shoulder in ODIs these days. Conditions and oppositions do not feature in his set-list. After taking a dominant avatar against England recently at home, Gill faced a different challenge against Bangladesh in India's Champions Trophy opener in Dubai on Thursday night. The pitch was sluggish and the bowlers consistently probed for weakness. But Gill beat both to notch up his eighth ODI hundred that led India to a six-wicket victory. The 125-ball century was the slowest he has made so far, but was perhaps the most important in his career.
That uncharacteristically sedate outing carried a deeper meaning as it validated Gill's growing stature as India's all-weather batter in white-ball formats.
His form is a good omen when legends like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who have been performing that role for several years, are in the twilight zone of their careers. And with important matches against Pakistan and New Zealand lined-up, India would need him to continue in the same vein.
There were a couple of signature shots last night — a cracking short-arm pull off pacer Tanzim Hasan and a spearing, lofted cover drive off the same bowler for a four.
Those hits in the ninth over were breathtaking, showcasing Gill's otherworldly timing, but even more mesmerising was his transformation to a batter full of self-restraint after that.
When Rohit Sharma (41) got out in the 10th over, Gill was batting on 26 off 23 balls, and a lift-off looked imminent.
But it wasn't there. His next boundary came in the 33rd over when pacer Taskin Ahmed returned to attack.
Till then, Gill was milking the spinners and pacer Mustafizur Rahman, a lethal slower ball, for singles and twos, ensuring that the quick start given by Rohit would not go in vain.
In that phase, the 25-year-old scored just 30 runs off 52 balls, showing admirable situational awareness. It was of little surprise when Gill termed it as a "satisfying" effort.
"Definitely one of my most satisfying innings that I have played. The message was sent from outside that I have to try to bat till the end and that's what I tried to do," Gill would say later to the host broadcaster.
Rohit was also chuffed to see the Punjab cricketer adhering to the team order.
"He's been batting brilliantly of late and what he showed us (against Bangladesh), it shouldn't surprise anyone. What was good to see was he was there till the end," said Rohit.
Along with carrying his bat through, Gill also tweaked his tactics as per the game's evolving needs.
A feature of Gill's batting was him coming down the track even against pacers, something he does not usually do.
Generally, he stays at the crease to drive, flick or pull the quicker bowlers, a minimalistic approach that reduces the risk quotient.
Gill explained that change in his approach.
"Cutting the ball wasn't easy because the balls which were outside the off-stump weren't coming onto the bat that nicely.
"So, I thought of using my feet to even the fast bowlers and tried to go over the circle," he added.
The strategic fluidity apart, Gill's willingness to look beyond easy-on-the-eye but fleeting knocks will stand India in good stead in this tournament.
If the early signs are anything to go by, then the pitches in Dubai could remain slow-burners.
While Pakistan have only one spinner in Abrar Ahmed, New Zealand will be a more formidable rival as they have two excellent white-ball spinners in Mitchell Santner and Michael Bracewell.
They were exceptional in stifling Pakistan in the middle overs in Karachi on a flatbed and the Kiwis can pose a bigger threat on the slack Dubai deck.
But now, India can look forward to that engagement with more confidence, knowing that Gill can anchor their innings.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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