IND vs WI: Shubman Gill struggle continues, Why has it not worked in Tests?

In reply of West Indies’ 150 runs, the Indian team is currently 312 for 2 and are eyeing a mammoth lead. Debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal is currently unbeaten on 143, whereas Virat Kohli is also at the crease on 36 at the end of the day’s play.

But amid all the bright sparks, the probable blue for the Indian team has to be Shubman Gill’s failure with the bat. On a deck where run-scoring has seemed easy for the Indian batters, Gill failed to capitalize as he was dismissed for just 6 runs.

But questions will raise if Gill continues his thin patch. The opener failed to score significant runs in the WTC Final against Australia. Despite his excellent batting record in limited-overs cricket as an opener, the decision to send him at one down can backfire.

Prior to Thursday, the last time Gill played at no. 3 was back in December 2021, when he scored 47 runs against New Zealand at Wankhede.

Gill has scored 927 runs at an average of 32 after 31 Test innings in 17 matches, which is an underwhelming record for a player of his stature. The batter has 2 centuries and 4 fifties in red ball cricket.

Why Gill struggles in Tests?

But it is more about conversion and consistency. Gill has so far failed to showcase his brilliance in Test cricket, and with just 2 centuries in his last 15 innings, there will be questions regarding his inclusion.

But is the change in the batting order associated with his failure? Shubman Gill has been slotted at no. 3 in this Test match. The batter has mostly been an opener in his senior India career across all formats, but was sent down to no. 3 to accommodate debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal.

In fact, captain Rohit Sharma said Gill himself wanted to bat at no. 3 and personally spoke to India coach Rahul Dravid about that. With the axing of Cheteshwar Pujara, it seems that the Punjab-born will be having the one-down role in the team for at least this series.

Also, his approach in Tests while batting is sometime to be blamed as the batter often gets out playing too many shots or having a lack of concentration. The latter theory can further be established from the fact that Gill has been dismissed between 44 to 50 runs on 7 occasions out of 31 innings, which perhaps indicates a lack of concentration when coking close to a milestone or immediately after achieving that.

It is high time he buckles it up in the Test format, otherwise, we may see the 23-year-old getting replaced by someone in form in the coming days.