Virender Sehwag, a veteran Indian opener, criticized Shubman Gill's batting approach during the Indian Premier League 2023 match between Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans at Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali. Despite scoring 67 runs, Gill failed to finish the game for his team and was dismissed in the final over. Punjab Kings seized the momentum in the last over and won the match with a ball to spare. Gill took 40 balls to score his half-century and then tried to accelerate the innings, which, according to Sehwag, put the Titans in a dangerous position.
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____ da mamla __ #AavaDe | #PBKSvGT | #TATAIPL 2023 pic.twitter.com/Ghoe7NGift
— Gujarat Titans (@gujarat_titans) April 14, 2023
“He scored 67 off 49 balls but when did he reach his fifty? He reached his fifty off maybe 41-42 balls so in 7-8 balls he has scored 17 more runs. The acceleration came there, after he had reached his fifty. If even that had not happened then GT would have chasing maybe 17 instead off 7 in the last over," Sehwag told Cricbuzz.
Sehwag, known for his aggressive batting style, was not impressed with Gill's approach and suggested that Gill was too focused on achieving his personal milestone rather than playing for the team. Sehwag further stated that when a player thinks about personal milestones, the game tends to hit back at him.
“You can’t think let me score a fifty and we will anyway win the match. This is cricket. The moment you think about your own performance (instead of the team), you will get a tight slap from cricket. You can’t think like that. If he had showed the same intent and played at close to a strike rate of 200 when he was nearing fifty then he could have reached his milestone a lot earlier and save more deliveries for his team," Sehwag added.
Shubman Gill has been a key player for Gujarat Titans this season, scoring 183 runs in four matches at a strike rate of 141.86. His team relies heavily on him to provide a solid start with the bat.
