“Lambe Race Ka Glashna”: ex cricketry indio Loods Shubman Gill’s Inde’s Inde 1

Former India batter and broadcaster Sanjay Manjrekar is full of praise for young gun Shubman Gill, predicting a long and successful international career for the young player. This comes after Gill played an important innings in India’s chase of 249 against England in the first ODI of the series in Nagpur on February 6. Batting at No. 3 in place of an injured Virat Kohli, Gill showed great composure, hitting 87 off 96 balls and helping India finish the chase in the 39th over.

Sanjay Manjrekar on Shubman Gill

Sanjay Manjrekar praised Shubman Gill and called him “Lambi race ka ghoda”, which translated to a player who would stay in the game for a long time. On X, he wrote:

We had a term in the team ‘Lambi race ka Ghoda’ for certain players. Meaning someone who will be around for a long time in Indian cricket. That’s what Shubman Gill is!

Gill’s role in the match

Gill willingly gave up his preferred opening spot to accommodate Yashasvi Jaiswal who was debuting in ODIs. Despite this, Gill stayed calm and confident at the crease, playing a supportive role to Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel, both of whom scored half-centuries. He showed a strong understanding of when to speed up and when to take it easy, hitting 14 boundaries and a six, and forming important partnerships with Iyer and Patel.

Gill on his vice-captaincy

After his match-winning performance, Shubman Gill shared that the vice-captaincy hasn’t changed his batting plans. He explained, “In batting not much has changed (after vice-captaincy), but on the field I want to know what the thinking is and what Rohit bhai thinks and give my inputs. He tells me if you want to tell me anything about the match, do not hesitate.” Despite some initial questions about his new role, Gill continued to show his hunger for big runs, having scored over 1500 runs in ODIs in 2023.

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Team India’s strong start

India had a solid start in the first ODI, even though Rohit Sharma didn’t perform well with the bat. Axar Patel made the most of his promotion in the batting order, scoring a quick 52, while Shreyas Iyer attacked the England bowlers after India was initially struggling at 19 for 2. On the bowling side, Ravindra Jadeja and debutant Harshit Rana impressed, each taking three wickets, as England couldn’t play the full 50 overs.