With only a few matches left before the T20 World Cup, vice-captain Shubman finds himself under scrutiny as he faces crucial test to rediscover form with India taking on South Africa at Dharamsala on Sunday
Shubman Gill during India’s practice session in Dharamsala on Saturday. Pic/PTI
The countdown to save his place in the playing XI begins for a beleaguered Shubman Gill, who is likely to get three matches against South Africa to prove his worth before the Indian team management switches to a Plan B ahead of the T20 World Cup, starting in six weeks.
As India gear up to play the third T20I against the Proteas on Sunday in sub-10-degree temperatures in the lap of the ice-clad Dhauladhar range, things are suddenly heating up in the Indian dressing room, with the prolonged poor form of skipper Suryakumar Yadav coming under the scanner.
Worse, his deputy Gill, who was pushed into the XI at the expense of a settled Sanju Samson, is not inspiring much confidence.
The South African pace attack featuring Anrich Nortje, Marco Jansen, Lungi Ngidi, Ottniel Baartman and Lutho Sipamla — have shown how to bowl on Indian tracks, and the HPCA Stadium strip, offering extra bounce and some movement off the surface, will certainly keep them interested.
Among all T20 sides, South Africa, in terms of personnel, appears to have the requisite balance to win the trophy in the Indian subcontinent this time.
With only eight games, starting from the third T20I, left before the start of the T20 World Cup title defence, India’s under-fire head coach Gautam Gambhir won’t be able to afford two out-of-form top-order batters in the starting line-up.
Gill’s entry into the T20 set-up was a classic case of trying to fix something that ain’t broken and things haven’t looked good so far.
In this backdrop, Gill would need to bat out of his skin to prove that Ajit Agarkar-led committee wasn’t wrong in throwing Samson under the bus for one
bad series against England.
17
No. of innings since Gill last scored a half-century in T20Is. His last 50-plus score (58 not out) came against Zimbabwe at Harare in 2024
Eight
Shubman Gill’s highest score in T20Is against SA, he has scored 12 runs in four innings @ 3.00
Three
No. of T20Is India have played in Dharamsala, winning two and losing one
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