Nagpur:
As India slumped to 19/2 in the sixth over chasing a modest target of 249 in 50 overs, all Shubman Gill was thinking of was to stay positive and not to take too many risks and not get too defensive. Player of the Match Gill did all these things, top-scored for India with 87 and shared crucial partnerships with Shreyas Iyer (59) and Axar Patel (52) to help India to a four-wicket win over England in the first ODI of the three-match series at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium here on Thursday.
India went into the match without the talismanic Virat Kohli, who was unavailable because of a sore right knee, and at that juncture losing Yashasvi Jaiswal (15) and Rohit Sharma (2) cheaply was a recipe for disaster. But Gill batted sensibly and with Iyer playing a counter-attacking innings, helped India to safety.
Gill said his thoughts at 19/2 were to be positive and play sensibly as the pacers were getting some assistance.
“Trying to be positive. There was a little in it for fast bowlers. (The) idea was not to go too much on the back foot and play good cricketing shots. When a player (Iyer) comes like that, the opposition also goes on the back foot. Good decision on his (Iyer’s) part also helped me,” said Gill in the post-match presentation.
Gill said batting was a bit difficult as the wicket got a bit sticky in the second innings.
“I thought it was a bit double-paced. Spinners varied their pace well, when they bowled slow, it was turning. Had it in mind to look to the square of the wicket and not try to hit down the ground,” said Gill.
Asked about his role after being promoted to vice-captain, Gill said nothing much has changed for him in terms of batting.
“In batting not much has changed, but on the field, I want to know what the thinking is and what Rohit bhai thinks and give my inputs. He tells me if you want to tell me anything in the match, do not hesitate,” said Gill.
With the Champions Trophy in Dubai looming on the horizon, Gill would hope to continue in the same vein in the next two ODIs against England and go into the ICC tournament with some big runs behind him.
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