Brian Lara, the great Windies batsman of the 1990s, the man who holds multiple records including the highest individual score by a batsman, the only batsman ever to have scored 400 in Test cricket, the only batsman to have scored 500 in first-class cricket has opined that of all the batsmen, Shubman Gill is likely to be the only batsman among the current lot, who is likely to break both of his records. When I read that, I was stunned. Coming from one of the great batsman this game has ever seen was if not outrageous, rather, something hard to digest. Gill, has hardly scored in challenging conditions against excellent bowlers. For Lara to narrow down to him to defeat his records, I could not believe my eyes. Let me also touch upon the wider ramifications if Gill pursues these targets in Brian Lara about Gill.
“Shubman Gill can break both my records,” Lara told Anandabazar Patrika. The former West Indies captain referred Gill as the most talented batter of the current lot. “Gill is the most talented batter in this new generation. He will rule cricket in the coming years. I believe he will go on to break many big records,” he added.
My two cents
Gill is talented, there is no doubt about that. His several innings in Australia where he made his international debut was the stuff of folklore. Especially, the 2nd innings at The Gabba. Pant took all the accolades and rightly so but Gill played a fabulous hand in that series win. If not for his 91, Pant would not have won the game and the series for the nation. However, the point is that, Gill lost his way after that fabulous initiation into Test cricket. Much was expected from his bat but he repeatedly fell short. Yes, he has scored 100s in all the formats but that does not mean he is that good a batsman. Atleast on the current form.
In the recently concluded World Cup, not only he failed to register a single hundred but he wasn’t that consistent either. He was struck down by dengue initially but the effects of the fever would have gone down during the later stages of the tournament. If not, he must not have been part of the playing eleven itself. Did he mislead the team management? This was the 3rd World tournament in which he didn’t make his mark. A couple of WTC Finals and now the ODI 2023 World Cup. In England, he came a complete cropper on swinging conditions.
Lara about Gill’s IPL runs
“Gill didn’t score a century (in the World Cup) but look a the knocks he has already played. He has centuries in all formats, has smashed a double hundred in ODIs and has also played many match-winnings in the IPL. I’m sure he will many ICC tournaments in the future,” he added.
The sad part of Lara’s interview is that he seems to have been influenced by Gill’s knocks in the IPL. First of all, the standard of IPL is much lower than the international standard. Second, a closer look at the runs and where he scored them will reveal that all those runs were scored on beautiful batting tracks and when it came to some tough pitches, Gill could not really get going. It shows that his game is not exactly suited to wickets that are slow or when the ball can swing. It is sad but that is the fact. His displays so far outside of plain batting pitches have left much to be desired. It really is a shame that a former cricketer like Lara is influenced by the batting display in a local tournament like the IPL.
Records are not that important
I do not want Gill to break any record. Records have been the bane of Indian cricketers ever since Gavaskar broke Sobers record for the most Test 100s, Indians are obsessed with records. Kapil Dev’s world record of 434 wickets accelerated that. With the advent of Tendulkar, records took the centrestage for every Indian. It has now become so bad that as long as someone scores a 100, it does not really matter even if the team loses. This is a sad state of affairs. Everyone remembers Tendulkar’s 100th 100. It was a painstaking effort on an easy pitch against an ordinary Bangladesh team. The entire country rejoiced at the landmark but no one batted an eyelid that India actually lost that game. The fact that Tendulkar reached the much coveted landmark seemed to have filled everyone with joy rather than the sadness of losing the game.
The record bug seems to have bitten Kohli as well. The couple of innings in the ODI World Cup where he was focussed on his 100 did not go down well with those who wanted to see the team win rather than any individual performances.
Wrapping up Brian Lara about Gill
I don’t think Gill can break Lara’s records but I would rather want him to bat according to the situation. The infatuation of the Indians towards records must be broken at some point in the future. If reports are to be believed, Gill is also among those who prefer his hundreds. I value a Sehwag or a Dhoni any day to a Tendulkar.
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