WTC Final Countdown – Playing in overseas conditions has given me a lot of confidence: Shubman Gill | Cricket News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Talented young batsman Shubman Gill has been in sensational form with the bat recently. Following an impressive performance in the recently-concluded Indian Premier League season 16, the 23-year-old is now set to carry his good form into the eagerly-awaited World Test Championship (WTC) Final against Australia. The match is scheduled to commence on June 7 at the Oval.
Considered to be an all-formats superstar in the making, Shubman, while playing for the Gujarat Titans in IPL 2023, displayed his dominance by smashing three centuries and emerging as the highest run-scorer of the tournament. Shubman signed off the tournament with a total of 890 runs at an average of 59.33 under his belt.
Shubman in fact became the first batsman to score centuries in Tests, ODIs, T20Is and in the IPL in the same calendar year.

Considering his recent scintillating form, Shubman is expected to fire on all cylinders when he opens Team India‘s batting alongside captain Rohit Sharma.
Shubman was also part of the Indian team that lost the inaugural World Test Championship final to New Zealand by eight wickets in Southampton in 2021. He contributed with 28 and 8 in the WTC final and will be itching to better those statistics.

“The experience in red ball cricket has been phenomenal. I have learned a lot with time and will keep learning. I have played around 15 Tests so far. Most of those Tests have been outside India. Playing overseas has given me a lot of confidence. The experience has been really great. You get to know different conditions, you get to play on different tracks, be it bouncy, spin-friendly, or anything else. I have cherished every single condition I have played in,” Shubman told TimesofIndia.com in an interview.
Shubman has played 15 Tests in his career so far, averaging 34.23, and has played the most number of Tests against Australia and England — 5 each.
In 5 Tests against Australia, Shubman has scored 413 runs at an average of 51.62. He has one century and 2 fifties under his belt against the Aussies.

Shubman’s Test debut was also against Australia during India’s 2020-21 tour, under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane. He was part of the victorious Rahane-led Team India’s memorable 2-1 series win against Australia in Australia.
Shubman played 3 Tests on that tour and scored 259 runs at an average of 51.80.
“From making my debut in Melbourne against Australia to playing in England, I got to learn a lot. Sharing the dressing room with the seniors – Virat bhai, Rohit bhai, Ajinkya, Pujara has been amazing. I have enjoyed batting in overseas conditions,” Shubman further told TimesofIndia.com.

On being asked about his favourite Test knock so far, Shubman rated his Brisbane knock as his best. He scored 91 runs in India’s thrilling three-wicket win against Australia in that match.

“There are so many (favourite knocks) but I will rate my knock in Brisbane on top. It will be close to my heart. Our team needed runs in that crucial match and I am happy that I could contribute and give my best. It was one of the best series wins. I am happy and proud that I was part of that series win,” the 23-year-old winner of the IPL 2023 orange cap said.

“Ajinkya led from the front and we all were confident that we would win. Rishabh played a wonderful knock and took us to a series win. It was a memorable win. I wanted to score as many runs in the fourth innings as possible and played confidently. I wanted to win the match for my team,” Shubman signed off.