Wanted to capitalise on a batting-friendly wicket: Gill after win over WI

On a concluding note, Gill said that shopping and art are important to him when he visits a new place.

Florida:: Indian batter Shubman Gill said that he was aiming to go big in the powerplay and the first half of India’s run-chase of 179 against West Indies in the fourth T20I after failing to touch double digits in first three matches.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) posted a video of an interaction between Gill, who scored 77 and Arshdeep Singh, who took three wickets and played a crucial role in India’s win.

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“In the first three matches, I could not score even 10 runs. Now, I had finally got a nice wicket to bat on and wanted to capitalise on it. Once I was able to get a good start, it was about doing well in the powerplay and initial stages and deciding the result of the match then and there,” said Gill in the video.

Gill has battled an inconsistent run of form in T20Is. He has scored 295 runs in three matches at an average of 32.77, but it has been boosted by scores of 126*, 77 and 46 in three innings.

On his lean patch, Gill commented, “You try to identify your mistakes. In my first three matches here, I was not making any. But I just could not convert my starts into something bigger.

T20Is are a format where you look for runs and play nice shots, but sometimes, it goes into the hands of fielders. At this time, you should think about the template that helped you score runs and go back to it.” Gill said that he felt nice coming here in Florida, for the first time ever and enjoyed the fan support.

Arshdeep also commented on his strategy of bowling on a flat, batter-friendly wicket.

“The pitch was flat. I read the conditions quickly, used my slower balls and hard lengths and got success,” he said.  He also said that his family was also present at the venue, which gave him some extra support but also added to the pressure.

“It was pre-planned (Relatives visiting the venue). My dad was in Canada to play matches so he came here. Their presence added some extra support for me, but I felt a little more pressure since I wanted to perform well in front of them,” Arshdeep said.

On a concluding note, Gill said that shopping and art are important to him when he visits a new place.

“There is a history of everything, of a place. If you do not shop in the US, what is the use of coming? Hopefully, we win the next match and the series too,” signed off Gill.

The duo also congratulated Indian men’s hockey team on winning their fourth Asian Champions Trophy after beating Malaysia 4-3 in finals at Chennai.

India has levelled the series 2-2 with this win, with one more game to go, which will be played on Sunday. Electing to bat first, West Indies was reduced to 57/4 in 6.5 overs by the duo of Arshdeep Singh and Kuldeep Yadav.

Shai Hope (45 in 29 balls with three fours and two sixes) and Shimron Hetmyer helped WI cross the 100-run mark. Hetmyer finally clicked on the white-ball tour, scoring 61 in 39 balls, consisting of three fours and four sixes. He and Odean Smith (15* in 12 balls) helped WI reach a total of 178/8 in 20 overs.

Arshdeep (3/38) and Kuldeep (2/26) were the best bowlers for India, offering a cocktail of spin and pace that had WI in trouble in the initial stages. Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal and Mukesh Kumar had a wicket each.

Chasing 179, India got the start they were just looking for. Openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill took full advantage of the flat, batting-friendly nature of the surface and piled up runs, taking the team to the brink of a win single-handedly.

The 165-run opening stand between the duo ended with Gill dismissed by Romario Shepherd for 77 off 47 balls, consisting of three fours and five sixes. Jaiswal (84* in 51 balls with 11 fours and three sixes) and Tilak Varma (7*) helped India chase the total with three overs to spare.

Jaiswal earned the ‘Player of the Match’ award for his performance.