Ashish Nehra on Indian Opening Pair: ‘You can drop Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill…’

Ashish Nehra on Shubman Gill: Shubman Gill is under fire from critics due to his poor performance in the first two T20s against South Africa. Meanwhile, Gujarat Titans coach Ashish Nehra has strongly defended and supported him.

Ashish Nehra on Shubman Gill: The Indian T20 team, which was dominant globally six months ago, is now showing weaknesses due to some changes. Shubman Gill made a comeback as the vice-captain in the Asia Cup squad, after which Sanju Samson was moved down the batting order from opening, and Rinku Singh was dropped from the playing XI.

Currently, Sanju is on the bench, while Rinku is out of the team. Gill has not performed exceptionally in the T20 series against South Africa, making him a target for critics. Questions are being raised about his inclusion in the playing XI.

Scored 4 runs in 3 balls in the last two matches

In the first two T20 matches against South Africa, Gill could only manage to stay at the crease for three balls. In Cuttack, he was dismissed after scoring just 4 runs off two balls, while in Mullanpur, he returned to the pavilion after scoring a duck on the very first ball. Gill now seems to be under pressure. If he fails to capitalize on the upcoming opportunities, he might be excluded from the plans for the T20 World Cup. Meanwhile, Gujarat Titans coach Ashish Nehra has supported Gill, stating that patience is needed at this time.

'This is our problem'

According to media reports, Ashish Nehra believes that Gill cannot be judged based on a few poor performances. He needs some more time. Nehra said, "If the IPL was 3 weeks away, I wouldn't have any tension because you are talking about the T20 cricket format. We have only played 2 matches against South Africa so far, and this is our problem. In such a fast-paced format, it is difficult to evaluate players like Gill after just two or three matches."

'You have many options'

Nehra added, "You have many options. You can replace Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill. You can have Sai Sudharsan and Ruturaj Gaikwad open. If you want to replace them, you can do so with Washington Sundar and Ishan Kishan. When it comes to replacing players after poor statistics, alternatives are always available, but if we do that, it will be very difficult."

Assistant Coach Extends Support

After a heavy defeat in the second T20 match against the Proteas, India's Assistant Coach Ryan ten Doeschate supported Gill. He stated that the young player has a lot of quality and it is only a matter of time before he performs well.

Ten Doeschate said, "I saw some good signs of change in Shubman's mindset at the end of the Australian tour. Despite getting out twice in this series, in the first match, we asked the players to attack in the powerplay, and the wicket in Cuttack was not very good."

Sanju scored 3 centuries last year

It is worth noting that Sanju Samson scored three T20 International centuries last year. Therefore, many believed he would be the opener. However, due to Shubman Gill's return to the T20 team, Sanju had to sit out.