A double-hundred in the second Test at Edgbaston has made Shubman Gill revisit his younger self. The Team India captain, who became the first Indian and Asian captain to score a double hundred in a Test match in England, said “he worked a lot” of his technique “at the end of the IPL and before this series”.
Throwing light on how “peak concentration time” eluded him of late, he said, “Before this, I felt my batting was going well. I was scoring 30-35-40 runs consistently in Test matches. But at some point, I was missing that peak concentration time. A lot of people say that when you focus too much, you sometimes miss your peak time.”
According to news agency PTI, the Indian captain said that he had stopped enjoying his batting in pursuit of runs but revisiting the basics and making some technical changes helped him rediscover the joy in his craft.
Going past Gavaskar
With his brilliant double ton, Gill went past Sunil Gavaskar's 221 at The Oval in 1979 to post the highest individual score by an Indian batter on English soil.
Gill's return to form comes after a lukewarm Test tour of Australia earlier this year, where he managed a highest score of just 31 across three Tests.
"Sometimes, when you aren't scoring runs fluently, you stop enjoying your batting. You focus too much on the need to score runs. I felt I had lost that in my batting. I was so focused that I wasn't enjoying my batting as much."
Gill's knock is also the highest by an Indian captain in Tests, surpassing Virat Kohli's unbeaten 254 against South Africa in Pune in 2019.
"When I went in to bat before lunch on the first day, at tea I was on around 35-40 runs off about 100 balls. I came out and spoke to GG (Gautam Gambhir) Bhai. I told him, 'I’m not getting runs freely, even though I have a lot of shots in my armoury.' I also felt the ball was a bit soft," the Punjab cricketer said.
"In the last match, I was scoring more fluently, but here it wasn't coming as easily. Still, my mindset was that if the wicket is good and I am set, no matter how long I bat, I shouldn't leave the match halfway.”
Batted like you did during U16-U19 during days: Gill's father
Gill's father, Lakhwinder Singh, was understandably proud of his son's feat and said it reminded him of his early days in age-group cricket.
"Shubman beta, well played. Watching your batting today was a lot of fun and gave me immense satisfaction," Singh said in a video posted by BCCI TV.
"Your innings reminded me of the way you used to play as a child—like during your U16 and U19 days. I felt very proud."
The message meant the world to the Indian skipper, who dedicated much of his cricketing journey to his father.
"Growing up, I played almost all my cricket for my dad. It was because of him that I even started playing cricket. For me, the only two people I truly care about and listen to when it comes to my game are my dad and my best friend. So, it really meant a lot coming from him," he added with a smile.
"Though he also reminded me that I missed my triple century -- hopefully, we can finish this match on a great note."
(With inputs from PTI)