Shubman returned to India's ODI fold after sixteen months and immediately impressed everyone with his brilliant display of aggressive batting as he smacked a whirlwind 64 off only 53 balls. Shubman Gill was firing on all cylinders and looked all set to bring up his maiden ODI hundred when he lost his wicket due to his poor running between the wickets. Shubman Gill hit an Alzarri Joseph delivery towards the short midwicket area when he attempted to take a quick single but that wasn't to be as West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran's direct hit cut short his innings in the 18th over of the Indian innings. Following his dismissal, Shubman Gill was criticized heavily on social media with many fans pointing out his casual approach while running between the wickets which cost him his wicket at Port of Spain. His lazy effort on the field was also noticed by former India pacer Ajit Agarkar who slammed him for not remaining 100 percent focused and missing a massive opportunity to score his first century in international cricket.
“He looked a little casual (while running). He took (it) a little bit easier today. And that (the run out) is the one thing you don't want to do. Shikhar Dhawan is probably going to teach him today, that once you get a start, don't be casual and give it away,” Ajit Agarkar said during his commentary stint.
“That run-out, that is too casual. You have to be aware of the situation, be intelligent. But he will learn it as time goes,” Ajit Agarkar.
Before Ajit Agarkar, Indian cricket fans blasted Shubman Gill for commiting a school boy like error.
“Bhaagna practice karo Gill Bhai…!!! Running between the wickets is poor and pathetic…!!!” a fan tweeted.
“Such runouts made us remember the Legend of laziest Runouts “Inzamam-ul-Haq”. He has got good Competition Now. I think Yo-Yo Test is Stopped,” another wrote on the micro-blogging platform.
“Shubman Gill – Lazy elegance and Lazy running between the wicket,” a third claimed.
“Shubman Gill making a school boy error of casually taking the single and not expecting the fielder to throw at his end… great pick up and throw by Nicholas Pooran. Sad ending to a great innings.. missed out on an easy century and possibly a huge score,” a fourth declared.
While Shubman Gill was at the crease, his alleged girlfriend Sara Tendulkar, the daughter of the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, was trending on Twitter. Several social media users posted hilarious memes and tweets to laud Shubman Gill's effort in the first ODI while mentioning his name alongside Sara Tendulkar in their posts.
“Sara Tendulkar will be very pleased after watching Shubman Gill batting tonight,” a fan said.
“Your father must be a proud man! Well play Sara Tendulkar,” a second stated.
En route to his score of 64, Shubman Gill went past Sachin Tendulkar to become the second youngest Indian batter to smash an ODI half-century in the Caribbean.
Virat Kohli is on top of the list as he scored his fifty at the age of 22 years and 215 days while Gill took 22 years and 317 days to achieve the feat.
Youngest Indian to Score Half-Century in West Indies in ODIs
22yr 215d – Virat Kohli
22yr 317d – Shubman Gill
24yr 003d – Sachin Tendulkar
Shubman Gill received a lot of flak for throwing his wicket away against the West Indies when he was well set and could have made it count. But his batting also received wholesome praise from ESPNcricinfo's Deivarayan Muthu, who said the 22-year-old looked apart among India's batters.
“Gill stretched out and belted the first delivery he faced, from fast bowler Jayden Seales, for a tone-setting four. It wasn't a long half-volley – Seales went full in search of some swing – but Gill made it look like one. Then, Alzarri Joseph, West Indies' premier seamer and Gill's IPL team-mate at Gujarat Titans, tucked him up with a shoulder-high short ball, but Gill managed to splice a six over fine leg,” Muthu wrote in his column for the highly-revered cricket website.
“Joseph then adjusted his radar and hit a hard length just outside off. Not many batters can pull or cut off such a length and with such limited width, but Gill has always had this unique ability to put even good balls away right from his Under-19 days. He jumped on top of the bounce and unveiled a VVS Laxman-esque backfoot glide through point and cover,” Deivarayan Muthu added.
“When Seales went shorter and even wider of off, Gill went airborne and heartily slapped it away past backward point for four more. Formative years of playing on cement wickets have made Gill particularly strong off the backfoot, and he used the extra pace of Joseph and Seales to his advantage after the sun broke through in Port of Spain,” Deivarayan Muthu pointed out.
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