Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif is worried about Shubman Gill’s defensive approach during India’s last match against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2023. Gill scored 10 off 32 and was largely undone by his game plan of surviving rather than taking on the opposition. Kaif opined on the importance of openers like Gill looking to attack the opposition’s new-ball bowlers and disturb their plans rather than waiting for the bad deliveries to punish them.
Speaking to Star Sports after Team India’s indoor nets session in Colombo, Mohammad Kaif said about Gill: “Gill showed no intent in that game (Pakistan). He had faced about 19-20 deliveries (32), and the only boundary he got was down the leg side. So he definitely needs to work on his intent. When the ball swings at pace, you need to get into positions quickly, and that is something that Gill will need to do in the indoor nets.”
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However, Mohammad Kaif also accepted that the indoor net session may not be as effective as the field practice. But he also suggested how Shubman Gill can make the most of it by facing the moving ball. Kaif also said that Gill could make use of the side-arm throwers, especially the left-arm side-arm angle, to prepare well against Shaheen Afridi as well.
He added, “The side-arm throwers generally try to shape the ball into the batters, and that is something that will certainly help Gill. If you see his dismissal (against Pakistan), he couldn’t bring his bat down in time and his stumps were rattled. So this left-arm side-arm thrower will definitely test his bat speed, and that’s something that will help him while facing Shaheen Afridi.”
However, Kaif also said that the Indian team need to figure out the workload they want to give KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer with the World Cup less than a month away and they have just returned from prolonged injury.
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He shared, “India have seen what happened with Jasprit Bumrah where he was cleared to play by the NCA but then got injured again. So they will need to be careful with Iyer and rahul and check on how much they need to play and when they need to take breaks. You don’t want to give them too much load before the match begins. That’s why Rahul Dravid and the trainers are present there.”
“Rahul Dravid will know that both (Rahul and Iyer) are the backbone of the Indian middle order and that they will need game time. Ishan played really well, and that’s good because there’s healthy competition in the team.”However, if an in-form player sits out, then it’s not a problem because Dravid will want to see Rahul bat at No.5. He has good numbers at No. 5, and you will want him and Iyer to get game time and have that form when they play the first World Cup game against Australia,” Mohammad Kaif concluded.
