Former Indian cricket team all-rounder Irfan Pathan gave a clear verdict on Shubman Gill playing all formats for the national side. There has been a lot of chatter over Gill getting picked as the vice-captain fo Asia Cup 2025. While Gill excelled in the first series as Test captain, there were questions asked over whether he will be able to play all three formats with equal brilliance.
Pathan was asked if Gill would go through a lean period like Virat Kohli did while playing all the three formats. The all-rounder gave a clear answer and said that it is too early to start that conversation involving Gill.
“Virat Kohli is a great player. He has been a match-winner. But he was averaging 15 batting first. And there are certain things that were not going his way. But it is not like he is not a good player if he did not perform at that time. He has won games for India for years. Tomorrow, if Shubman does not perform, if his average is also 15 for an entire year, and he is still with the team, then we will talk. For now, he was the vice-captain before as well, but no one questioned that when he went out. Now he is back, which was his place,” he said during an interaction organised by Sony Sports Network.
Gill last played in the shortest format of the sport just ahead of the T20 World Cup in 2024. However, Pathan believes that Gill has improved his T20 game a lot and will not find it difficult to adapt to the format and play aggressively for the Indian cricket team.
“I think Shubman Gill has improved his T20 cricket a lot. What we have seen this season, the way he played, the amount of runs he scored, and few seasons in the IPL as well. There was a time I remember when he started, when he played for KKR, I vaguely remember his strike-rate was about 125ish. And then suddenly he jumped to 150. Last year’s IPL was 150 plus and he was consistently scoring runs as well,” he said.
“Now the Indian team has gone to a higher strike-rate, they want to be very aggressive. So I don’t think there should be an issue for Shubman Gill to start playing an aggressive role and do what the team demands of him,” he added.