Ravi Shastri gobsmacked watching India youngster bat, immediately asked 'Who's this bloke?', told selectors 'get him in'
During his time as India's head coach, Ravi Shastri unearthed quite a few gems. Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj, Prithvi Shaw, T Natarajan, Washington Sundar, Shubman Gill to name a few. Even Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah made their Test debuts, as did Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari and Karun Nair. Unfortunately, many of these names faded away. Some slipped down in the pecking order, such as Mayank and Vihari, and even Pandya, whose body gave up on him, denying the rigours of playing all three formats. The ones who did make it, though, were Gill and Bumrah – one became world cricket's greatest pacer, the other India's Test captain. Ravi Shastri recalls being blown away watching the Indian youngster bat.(AFP)
A lot of players come every now and then, but very rarely does a young cricketer emerge who captivates the imagination like no one else. Indian cricket has been divided into heroes over the last five decades. From Sunil Gavaskar, the baton passed to Sachin Tendulkar, then Virat Kohli, and, if the hype is to be believed, now Gill. India's newly crowned Test captain, Gill, started off the tour of England on a blazing note, scoring a defiant half-century when India had lost two wickets in two overs before lunch. An elated Shastri, in the commentary box, seemed over the moon watching one of his discoveries on the fast track to success.
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Watching Gill thrive, Shastri's mind harked back to 2018, when an 18-year-old Gill was sweating it as part of India's Under-19 squad. Gill was the Player of the tournament as India won the Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand seven years ago. The former India head coach recalled being blown away watching Gill and urged the BCCI not to waste time in giving him a chance with the senior team. That is when Gill made a lot of heads turn. He just seemed to have time, more than anyone else, as he bludgeoned through the likes of Pakistan and Australia.
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"He's got the flair, he's got the game. And he's not the kind who changes his approach because it comes naturally to him. There's no doubting his talent. When he came on the scene, everyone knew that here's a player who's going to be around for a decade. There's no doubt about that. I remember seeing him for the first time when I was the coach and he was batting in the nets. He came out to bat and I went to the other coaches and said 'Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Who is this bloke? Get him in." Gill's India debut
About a year later, Gill made his India debut during an ODI series in New Zealand, just a couple of months before the 2019 World Cup. Gill then made his Test debut in the Boxing Day Test match against Australia at the MCG and scored an unbeaten 48 as India completed a famous win after their infamous 36 all out in Adelaide.
"He had that regal element about him. Just the way he played, and the shots he possessed. Especially against the quicks and the bouncing ball. He started off well during the Under-19 World Cup when Rahul [Dravid] was the coach. And just came through the ranks nicely," added Shastri.
It's a challenge in itself when someone comes through, and everyone says this is the future of the country. More so in India, where expectations go through the roof. For all the pieces of the puzzle, Gill seems to have come through nicely. Having made it in the ODIs, he's now grinding it out in Test set-up.
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