Shubman Gill Continues to Flop in T20s, Yet Team Management Keeps Backing Him
Shubman Gill's Flop Show, India vs South Africa T20: In their insistence on getting Gill fit, the team management is risking Sanju Samson's career. After 'seizing' Samson's spot as an opener, Gill has played 13 innings so far, scoring 263 runs at a poor average of just 20.23.
Back-to-back T20 series are over, and Shubman Gill's performance is the same. Gill has never been a good performer in T20 cricket. His statistics seem to be even worse than that of an average player. Head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar are giving him umpteenth chances and trying hard to fit him into the Indian T20 team somehow.
Team management is jeopardizing the career of wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson in their insistence upon making Gill fit. The talented opener has played 13 innings and scored 263 runs at a mediocre average of 20.23 since displacing Samson as an opener. Most shockingly, Gill has not scored a single half-century in his last 16 innings, with his highest score coming against Pakistan in the Asia Cup.
This trend was also evident in the first T20 match between India and South Africa, played at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack on Tuesday. The start of the match proved disastrous for Shubman Gill. He edged the first ball for a boundary. However, he was caught at mid-on by Marco Jansen off a short-pitched delivery from Lungi Ngidi, and returned to the pavilion after scoring just four runs.
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Gill also disappointed in the Asia Cup. Team India performed brilliantly in the tournament, but Gill's performance as an opener was not particularly impressive. He played a good innings in only one match, and the rest of the tournament proved to be a flop. Looking at his T20 career, his statistics are also quite modest.
Gill has so far scored 841 runs in 34 innings at an average of 29.99, including one century and three half-centuries. Gill's career strike rate is also very low. Despite being an opener, he scores at a strike rate of just 140.63.
Regarding Samson's career, Sanju Samson has performed exceptionally well as an opener since the T20 World Cup 2024. As an opening batsman, Samson scored three centuries in a year, but Shubman Gill's return to the team usurped his opening slot. As an opener, Samson has scored 512 runs in 14 matches at an average of 39.38. During this period, his strike rate has been 182.20.
Reflecting on Samson's career, he has scored 995 runs in 43 innings of 51 matches at an average of 25.51. During this period, he has also scored three centuries and three half-centuries. Samson has never received consistent opportunities. Despite his good performances, he has been repeatedly dropped from the team.
