Shubman Gill is gearing up for the upcoming Bangladesh Test series with a renewed focus on his defence against spinners. The right-handed batsman, who enjoyed a successful home series against England earlier this year, believes a stronger defence against spin will be crucial in the two-match series starting September 19.
Gill, who will lead Team A in the Duleep Trophy, has identified spin bowling as an area for improvement in the longer format. “I worked on my defence a little bit more against spinners. You should be able to defend a lot more when you are playing on a turning track against spinners, then you can play the scoring shots,” Gill said on Wednesday. “With more T20s being played…I won’t say on flat tracks but on batting-friendly tracks, I think it takes away a little bit of your defensive game. So, that was my focus in the England series.”
While Gill has impressed in white-ball cricket, his Test career has yet to reach the heights he expects. However, with 10 Test matches scheduled this season, he remains optimistic about a turnaround. “In Test cricket, my performance has not matched my expectations so far. But we are going to play 10 Test matches this season, and when I look back after those 10 Tests, hopefully, my expectations will be matched,” he stated.
Gill also highlighted his growing maturity as a cricketer, attributing it to his captaincy stints with India and the Gujarat Titans in the IPL. He emphasized the importance of understanding players’ strengths and weaknesses as a leader. “Every match or tournament that you play, you look to learn more about yourself irrespective of whether you are captain or not the captain. More so because of the captaincy you will get to know about other players too. It’s important for the captain to have a connection with the players. You should know their strength and weaknesses. Yeah, there are some changes in me especially when you are captain or vice-captain and having those conversations,” he elaborated.
Despite his leadership roles, Gill insists his primary focus remains on scoring runs for the team. He views the upcoming Duleep Trophy as a valuable opportunity to fine-tune his skills and prepare for the demanding Test season. “This (Duleep Trophy) is a big tournament as every match is important for us. We are playing against some players whom we generally play with in the Indian team. So, we will get to see a good competition,” Gill noted.
With a packed schedule ahead, Gill confirmed that there have been discussions between players and management regarding workload allocation. He particularly highlighted the importance of managing the workload for bowlers. “There is definitely talk among the selectors and players about the workload. But I think everyone has played a lot of cricket to be able to understand what they need to do when they are playing the match, more so for the bowlers I would say. I am sure the bowlers had a conversation with the selectors about how they are going to manage their workload,” he said.
However, the Duleep Trophy will begin without India pacer Prasidh Krishna, who is recovering from surgery. “Prasidh Krishna is not ready for this match,” Gill confirmed. Krishna underwent surgery in February and missed the recently concluded KSCA Maharaja Trophy T20 tournament.
