In preparation for the opening Test match against South Africa, which begins in Kolkata on Friday, India skipper Shubman Gill spent about an hour and a half at the nets honing his technique, as it takes time to transition from the shorter formats to the demands of red-ball cricket.
After battling to a hard-earned 1-1 draw in Pakistan last month under difficult circumstances, the Proteas come with a lot of confidence.
Gill has been looking for runs in white-ball cricket after scoring a fifty and an undefeated century in India’s two home Test matches against the West Indies last month.
In eight innings throughout the ODIs and T20Is in Australia, Gill only made one noteworthy score, a 46 at Carrara Oval. After a lackluster white-ball run, Gill batted with determination as he returns to lead the Test team.
Gill was observed having a lengthy conversation with head coach Gautam Gambhir and assistant coach Sitanshu Kotak near the High Court end prior to the nets, probably discussing his strategy. Later, Gill practiced slip-fielding with his teammates before joining Yashasvi Jaiswal for an intense net session.
Gill started with spin and played largely on the ground with sporadic sweeps against Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja. He battled Jasprit Bumrah for a few overs at the pace nets before being put to the test with seam movement by Nitish Kumar Reddy and a few local club bowlers.
Gill was then given more bounce and speed by a support staff member who delivered throwdowns from height using a sidearm. After spending over an hour in the side nets, he moved to the central strip for an additional half hour of throwdowns as bowling coach Morne Morkel kept a close eye on him. Morkel himself turned his arm over to produce quick speed and bounce.
After scoring 67 and 156 for Rajasthan in the Ranji Trophy, Jaiswal also spent a significant amount of time at the central wicket, where he faced Morkel and throwdowns. The left-hander drove and pulled with confidence, appearing to have fluid touch.
Sai Sudharsan, who scored just 84 runs in two unofficial Test matches for India A against South Africa A, was another batter who spent a lot of time at the nets.
Sudharsan has only scored 61 against England in Manchester and 87 against the West Indies at home in Test cricket thus far, but the team management still supports him for the No. 3 spot.
After a tough A series in Bengaluru that ended on Sunday, his India A teammates, KL Rahul, Jurel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj, skipped the optional practice and joined the squad just one day earlier.
However, Sai batted with full intensity against throwdowns at the center strip, facing pacers and spinners.
The third spot is still a topic of discussion, particularly since Dhruv Jurel is performing well.
Only Bumrah showed up among the pacers, keeping it light with spot bowling to two stumps for almost 15 minutes, focusing on the off stump.
Bumrah also batted for a short while and engaged with teammates in a laid-back manner. He bowled under the guidance of Gambhir and Morkel despite having a minor strapping on his right knee.
The team’s think tank, which included Gambhir, Kotak, Morkel, and Gill, assembled at the center wicket for a lengthy pitch evaluation following nearly three hours of training.
Morkel and Gill assessed firmness of the pitch, before calling curator Sujan Mukherjee for a fifteen-minute conversation. Based on their facial expressions, it seemed that the management was not totally satisfied with the surface. There were pale areas of grass and the pitch looked brown.
India pacer Akash Deep and veteran Mohammed Shami had struggled for assistance on the first day of the two Ranji matches in Kolkata earlier this season, but Shami’s reverse swing subsequently turned things around.
The team management has not requested a “rank turner,” CAB president Sourav Ganguly has already made it clear.
