Ten Doeschate urges Gill to relax, play with same freedom he shows in IPL
MULLANPUR
Shubman Gill has been “a bit too tight” since returning to T20Is, focusing too much on justifying his place rather than expressing himself freely, India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said after the team’s 51-run loss to South Africa in the second T20I on Thursday. Gill, who rejoined the format during the Asia Cup following standout Test performances in England, has replaced Sanju Samson at the top but has struggled to produce impactful scores ahead of the home T20 World Cup.
Ten Doeschate suggested that Gill’s sense of responsibility from captaining India in England may have carried into his T20 approach, making him play within himself. The team management, he said, wants Gill to “free up” and bat with the same fluency he shows during the IPL. He added that the support staff firmly backs both Gill and captain Suryakumar Yadav despite the latter’s extended lean patch.
The former Netherlands all-rounder said Suryakumar still has the team’s full confidence and emphasized that two low scores are no reason for concern. He felt the right-hander had shown promising signs during the recent Australia tour and would regain form soon.
Reflecting on India’s bowling performance, ten Doeschate admitted the attack had “a poor night,” with Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah conceding heavily in favourable batting conditions. Arshdeep’s seven wides in the 11th over and deviation from planned strategies contributed significantly to South Africa’s total of 213.
He also explained the decision to promote Axar Patel up the order, saying the team is experimenting with combinations as it has often found itself 35 for three in recent months. With limited games left before the World Cup, India is exploring ways to strengthen the batting bridge between the top order and the middle-order hitters.
