The Prince of Indian Cricket got a golden opportunity to cement No 3 spot in Test side for years to come. Selectors wanted to look beyond Cheteshwar Pujara and that’s where Gill was destined to shine. Yet, since his last Test century, Gill’s scores read: 0, 23, 10, 36, 26, 2, 29*, 10, 6, 18, 13. In the IND vs ENG 1st Test, he registered scores of 23 and a two-ball duck, falling to the same trap Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed for in the 2nd innings. That raises the question: how long is too long? And should India look at Rajat Patidar in the 2nd Test.
In those 11 innings since the century against Australia, Shubman Gill has lacked confidence in batting in Tests. He has only averaged 17.30 with a highest score of 36 in Test since his century.
“What kind of a shot was he looking to play? One can understand if he was looking to play it in the air but it was just a badly executed on-drive. He did all the hard work and then played a shot like that,” Sunil Gavaskar questioned after he was dismissed in the first innings of IND vs ENG 1st Test.
Should India drop Shubman Gill?
It is now evident that the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee won’t look back at Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara. But should they? While Rahane is out of form in Ranji Trophy, Pujara has been in scoring form. He hit a double ton against Jharkhand.
If selectors do look back, Pujara seems to be the only choice at No 3. But he is also nursing a back injury. Hence, Rajat Patidar who is already in the team could be an option to replace Shubman Gill.
Rajat Patidar has had a great run in domestic and first-class cricket since his return from injury. And after the way Gill was dismissed in both the innings, time could be up. An India loss in Hyderabad could prompt Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma to ring in changes.
