Given his recent slump in form, former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan feels that Shubman Gill is under increasing pressure to perform. With the T20 World Cup approaching with Sanju Samson waiting in the wings for a chance in the starting lineup, Pathan emphasised that Shubman had to start scoring regularly to guarantee his spot in the T20I team.
The first two games of the current five-match Twenty20 International series against South Africa have shown Shubman difficulties. Concerns about his form grew when he scored just four runs in the first game and was hit by a golden duck in the second.
“Shubman is the primary subject. The World Cup is coming up, and he is the vice captain. He is having trouble finding form, though, and runs are not coming. If he wants to secure his place in the T20I team, he needs to score runs; else, he would face increased pressure. In the second T20I, Gill was dismissed for a first-ball duck, but he wasn’t playing as well as he had in the first. Since Sanju Samson is currently benched, the pressure will increase whenever he doesn’t score runs,” Pathan stated on his YouTube channel.
Pathan believes that Gill’s ability to score runs becomes essential if India supports him for the forthcoming World Cup. He cautioned that Gill’s ongoing difficulties could be detrimental to India, especially during the powerplay when a strong start is crucial. Additionally, Pathan advised Samson to maintain his mental toughness since, should Gill’s poor performance continue, the team management might look to him.
At the same time, Pathan said he was confident Gill will regain his form as long as he followed his natural strategy.
India will be in a catch-22 if Sanju Samson gets included in the squad but fails to score any runs. However, Shubman Gill needs to score runs if India is supporting him for the World Cup. India will suffer if it doesn’t because they might not get off to a strong start. Second, because he is a member of the leadership group, Gill will be under continual pressure,” Pathan stated.
Samson should therefore be psychologically prepared as well. I’ll tell it again: if Gill follows his own strategy, he will score runs. There will be issues if he continues to believe that another player is waiting. Then, the function of the team management will be crucial,” he said.
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