Shubman Gill has been chasing Babar Azam’s spot for quite some time. The Baby GOAT has inched closer to dethroning Babar Azam from the World No 1 ODI batter spot. But Shubman will not be able to surpass the Pakistani skipper in the India vs Netherlands in the World Cup warm-up on Oct 3.
The reason is fairly simple. The World Cup warm-up matches are not International games and are therefore treated as friendly games. Therefore whatever runs both the batters score in their respective warm-up matches won’t account for any change in their current ODI standings.
Babar Azam showed his class in the Pakistan vs. New Zealand Warmup match. The Pakistani skipper slammed 80 runs from 84 balls to register his maiden fifty on Indian soil. Should Shubman Gill go on to slam a century against Netherlands it won’t account for anything.
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The two batters have been fighting against each other. While Babar is keen to continue his dominance, the young Baby Goat is determined to dethrone him. Shubman Gill slammed a fine half-century in the first game at Mohali and then went on to reach the three-digit mark at Indore. Had Shubman managed to score 22 runs more, he would have become the new World ODI number 1 batter.
Currently, only 10 points separate the two batters. Babar has 857 points while Shubman is poised 2n with 847 points. It is expected that the two batters will continue this fight for the top spot throughout the World Cup.
ICC Men’s ODI Batting Rankings
Both the teams are slated to play 2 warmup matches and whatever runs they score, won’t account for anything as they are not official international matches and are therefore deemed as friendly matches.
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Babar Azam on the other hand has a mighty chance to increase his points which will pose a big threat to Shubman Gill. Both the rival nations begin their World Cup journey on different terms. Pakistan faces the Netherlands in their opening game and it provides a wonderful opportunity for Babar to score big runs and increase his advantage.
On the other hand, India plays against Australia. It will be a bit difficult job for Gill to get a big score against the mighty Aussie side but given how Gill has played recently, there is a high chance that the two will continue to showcase their batting skills and keep the fans enthralled.
ICC ODI World Cup Warm-up Results
| Date | Day | Team 1 | Team 2 | City | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 29 | Fri | Bangladesh | Sri Lanka | Guwahati | Bangladesh won by 7 wickets |
| Sep 29 | Fri | South Africa | Afghanistan | Thiruvananthapuram | Wash out |
| Sep 29 | Fri | New Zealand | Pakistan | Hyderabad | New Zealand won by 5 wkts |
| Sep 30 | Sat | India | England | Guwahati | Wash out |
| Sep 30 | Sat | Australia | Netherlands | Thiruvananthapuram | No Result |
| Oct 2 | Mon | England | Bangladesh | Guwahati | England win by 4 wickets |
| Oct 2 | Mon | New Zealand | South Africa | Thiruvananthapuram | NZ win by 7 runs |
| Oct 3 | Tues | India | Netherlands | Thiruvananthapuram | Wash out |
| Oct 3 | Tues | Pakistan | Australia | Hyderabad | Australia win by 14 runs |
| Oct 3 | Tues | Afghanistan | Sri Lanka | Guwahati | Afghanistan win by 6 wickets |
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