Kolkata: Cricket is a rapidly changing landscape but Shubman Gill nudges you to believe that it’s not for the worse. In an era where bats are being randomly tested by umpires, Gill excites the traditionalists with the use of his bottom hand, the short arm jab and the ridiculously well-executed leg-side swipe of sixth stump deliveries.
At a time when batting is all too dizzyingly buccaneering, he is the secret ingredient to a failsafe consistency that even Brendon McCullum would yearn for. He is also an example of why numbers shouldn’t always be allowed to dictate the narrative.
KKR would know. Throughout his stint with them, Gill’s strike rate was 123, not marauding but still with 10 fifties in 55 innings he was the sort of guy you would want in the event of a collapse. But KKR let him go when he was still raw, only 22.
Gujarat Titans lapped him up and now in an almost similar span (53 innings) Gill has 13 fifties, four hundreds, nearly double sixes (68, from 36 with KKR) and a strike rate of 148.48, all while opening the batting. And you still feel there is probably more to Gill.
To not give into the impulse of lashing out at every ball can be challenging but Gill more than makes up with those clever late cuts and fine slices. Picking a signature shot is difficult, but the cut behind square is a pretty good bet.
More invigorating must be Gill’s ability to score without being noticed and to change the complexion of an innings slowly but surely. Between Gill and Sai Sudharsan, there is no ambiguity over how Gujarat Titans want to start their batting every innings. Or who wants to stay till the end.
“There is no such conversation,” Gill said after Titans’ 39-run win over KKR on Monday. “We want to play our best game, score as much runs, we never say that one of us has to stay in the end. We just want to bat deep.”
Just the sort of words you would want to hear as India start limbering up for the 2026 T20 World Cup. No Virat Kohli, no Rohit Sharma, this is when you would want to nail down the top-order, preferably with an anchor. Who better than Gill right now? Not just because of the rate with which he converts but also the stability he provides while the other batter goes bonkers.
Also, the quiet ruthlessness in stealing risk-free singles while keeping fielders waiting for miscues and edges, manufacturing a midwicket pull when the ball is asking to be hit through the off, building partnerships, adding to the frustration of the bowlers and setting up the finishers with an unshakeable foundation. These are qualities any team would want in their batting, across any format.
Gill has opened for Titans as well as for India in their last T20I against Sri Lanka, but there is always this argument that openers tend to use up a disproportionately large number of deliveries without guaranteed returns.
Having ceremoniously junked that approach before the 2024 T20 World Cup, India aren’t expected to backtrack on that any time soon as well. Which makes Gill ideally suited for No 3 if Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson—or KL Rahul—open. That gives him the opportunity to consolidate or rebuild, depending on how the situation pans out. In a line-up catering to matchups and strike rates, Gill is a multi-faceted shock absorber who can dictate the ebb and flow of the innings.
Not to forget how he is also slowly shaping into an astute captain as well. Shouldering the batting responsibility is one thing, ringing in the right kind of bowling changes to peg back Kolkata Knight Riders at their own home is another.
And while coach Ashish Nehra may largely be the reason why Titans’ bowling looks so effective, it couldn’t have harnessed its full potential without Gill’s game awareness. An example would be taking mental notes for his bowlers while batting, something Sai Kishore pointed out Gill is good at.
“I think especially when it comes to spin, and he (Shubman) is a wonderful player of spin, it helps when he is captaining,” said Kishore at the post-match press conference. “He gives me a few pointers that you can do this, you can do that. When you’re a bowler who relies on the wicket, you can turn the ball on both sides, all those things won’t matter. But when you’re a finger spinner, you need all these small inputs. So in that way, it’s been very very beneficial, especially in this game (at Eden).”
At a time when modern batting is being typecast into the ‘see-ball-hit-ball’ mould, Gill is a rare exception who is willing to observe and analyse more than what he is required to. Which already makes Gill coveted because in him there are delightful references to the past and an encouraging indication of the future. Gujarat Titans are reaping its benefits right now. But it shouldn’t be long until India too understands that in Gill they might have an all-format bulwark.
