IPL Eliminator: Mohali high in spirits as Shubman Gill returns home after becoming India's Test captain

Time of India

4 days ago

Gujarat Titans' captain Shubman Gill (AP Photo)
TimesofIndia.com in Mullanpur:
On Friday, when he leads the Gujarat Titans (GT) against Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Eliminator at the New PCA Stadium in Mullanpur, it will be the first time
Shubman Gill
will be playing at his home venue after becoming India's Test captain.
Would he get sentimental or act cool about it? Deepinder Chabra, the assistant curator at the Mullanpur Stadium, keeps it crisp. "Punjabi load nahi lete (Punjabis don't overthink)," he tells TimesofIndia.com.
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Chabra, who has given almost two decades of his life to the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) and has seen India's Test captain when he used to walk out with an oversized helmet and pads, reveals the chat the two had when GT trained at the stadium on Tuesday night.
Who's that IPL player?
"It's a big honor for us. A cricketer from Punjab has become India's Test captain. Becoming India's Test captain is a huge deal. I told him 'now your image will be in the stadium's galleries next to the likes of Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev,
Sachin Tendulkar
, MS Dhoni, and Virat Kohli. It's a big responsibility, Shubman.' He nodded and replied, 'Will leave no stone unturned to keep that legacy intact,'" reveals Chabra.
Gill's elevation to Test captaincy has attracted a mixed response with many former cricketers not mincing their words on the move.
Shubman Gill story: From a remote village near the border to India's Test captain
"He has not even secured his place in India's Test XI," Srikkanth had told TimesofIndia.com, after the youngster was announced India's captain.
But back in Mohali, the vibe is different.
Yuvraj Singh
, one of Shubman's mentors, was at the Chandigarh airport on Monday to receive the prince of Indian cricket.
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Former India bowler and national selector Harvinder Singh is ignoring the "outside noises" and feels Gill was the right choice for Test captaincy.
"I know there are concerns about him being captain. But these are outside noises. There was always a leadership quality in him. Even in our selection panel, we had circled Shubman as India's next captain. So, I am not surprised," says Harvinder.
"It will be a litmus test for sure. Captaining India for the first time, that too in England. It has been a nightmare tour for many former Indian captains. But it is good. His batsmanship, his leadership, and most importantly, his character will be tested.
He will come out a better cricketer at the end of the five-match series," adds the former cricketer who has played 3 Tests and 16 ODIs for India.
'Shubman Gill used his brains a lot more than the other guys'
Gill's obsession
With the Mullanpur venue not available, GT were training at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday. The iconic venue where it all started for Gill.
Watching GT batters practice in the nets is about watching a lot of Gill's smooth stroke play. Gill, right from his age-group cricket days, has had an insatiable obsession with spending time in the nets.
Spending hours facing the cricket ball is a habit his father Lakhwinder Singh drilled into a young Shubman, and he continues to follow what has worked for him.
"At that age, you generally don't see anyone batting in the nets for so long. Then there was Shubman, who had to be forced out of the nets,' says Gurkeerat Mann.
"A lot of credit goes to his father who made him understand that the more he bats in the nets, the longer he will be able to bat in the match.
I guess that has become a habit. He is carrying his father's wisdom with him,' adds Mann.
To end the conversation on a lighter note, Chabra reveals another unknown facet about Gill. A trait that has been lesser known to the world.
"As a person, he has not changed much. Even now he bats the most in the nets. Above all, 'Munda mahool bana ke rakhta hai (The boy keeps the atmosphere very light).' I have seen him doing pranks on his teammates in his U-16 days, and nothing has changed now," says Chabra.
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Punjab all-rounder Ramandeep Singh, who has known Gill from a very young age, explains the reason behind Gill's stubbornness to bat in the nets.
"You will see a different Shubman in every game. Right from a very young age, one thing that was very unique in him was that he was a quick learner. He keeps improving himself. And nets are his second home. He trains until he finds that perfection," says Ramandeep.
Ramandeep further explains how Gill has worked on his power-hitting in recent years.
"He was never a power-hitter. In T20s also, his strike rate used to hover around 120. He used to try to play along the ground. Playing aerial shots was a big no. But now see his six-hitting. It didn't come naturally to him. He has worked on it at the nets,' says Ramandeep.
We will come to know in a few hours whether India's new Test skipper will have a happy homecoming but the hopes and spirits continue to be high in Mohali - the place where it all started for the classy right-hander.