Not Shubman, but 'Soothman' Gill: Gavaskar gives sensational Indian batter new nickname
Indian opener Shubman Gill has won the hearts of millions with his impressive batting style and composure, and former Indian great Sunil Gavaskar has given the youngster a new nickname.
FollowIndian opener Shubman Gill's recent performances have been impressive and have won the hearts of millions of cricket fans. The legendary Sunil Gavaskar, too, admires the youngster, who recently became the eight batter in ODI history to score a double century.
In the ongoing ODI series against New Zealand, Gill proved his worth after much debate as he scored a splendid 208 against the Kiwis in the first ODI at Hyderabad earlier this week. The 23-year-old's ODI average of 71.38 after 20 games is astounding, and the fact that he already has three hundred in the ODI format in such a short period has made him a player to watch out for in the future.Â
Gill maintained his unbeaten status on 40 even in the 2nd ODI in Raipur on Sunday, helping India easily surpass the 109-run mark set by New Zealand.
After the 2nd ODI, Gill had a fun chat with Gavaskar. "I have given you a new nickname, Smoothman Gill. I hope you don't mind," the legendary batter said during an interview after India's win over New Zealand.
"I don't mind at all, sir," Gill responded.
In the Hyderabad ODI, Gill reached the 1000-runs mark in 19 innings. He surpassed Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan, who amassed 1000 runs in the format in 24 innings, to become the fastest Indian to reach the milestone.
Along with Pakistan's Imam-ul-Haq, Gill is currently the joint-second fastest player to accumulate 1000 runs. The Indian opening batter beat the likes of Viv Richards, Babar Azam, Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott, Quinton de Kock, and Rassie van der Dussen, all of whom reached 1000 ODI runs in 21 innings. The quickest player to 1000 runs in ODIs is Fakhar Zaman of Pakistan (18 innings).
Meanwhile, former Pakistan captain Salman Butt heaped praises on Shubman Gill on his YouTube channel.Â
"I became a big fan of Shubman Gill ever-since I saw him playing in the Test championship final against New Zealand. His elegance and style in his strokes are really commendable. The only concern I had was that why isn't he able to achieve a big score. But he played a very different kind of cricket yesterday," he said.Â
"Very less people have such type of finish in their style at such a young age. I think he is one of his kind. I am not saying that he has achieved everything in his career but if he continues to play like this and work hard then he will be on the path where he will achieve greatness," Butt added.
