Shubman Gill has earned his spot, says Rudraneil Sengupta

Shubman Gill and the rest of the Indian batting order was outskilled by Australia’s bowling attack, in the first innings of the ongoing World Test Championship final at the Oval in London this week.

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Things may change as the tournament progresses (Sunday is the fifth and final day), but Gill’s display (out for 13, as opener) was a letdown. It was particularly disappointing since this has otherwise been a year of blazing displays by this prodigiously gifted young talent.

The 23-year-old from Punjab was first described as “destined for greatness” in 2018. He had just crafted a century against Pakistan in the semi-final of the Under-19 World Cup.

At this stage, transitioning out of the cheerful days of youth sport to the high-stakes, ultra-competitive world of the elite, many falter. Some fail. Only a very few just keep getting better, surpassing even the hopes that others had for them. This year has shown us that Gill is probably in that rare last set.

In the first three months of 2023, he became the youngest double centurion in one-day internationals; notched the highest individual score by an Indian in a T20 international; and scored a Test century against Australia. All this, before he went on the rampage in the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he emerged as the season’s highest scorer.

He looked invincible in the IPL, smashing back-to-back hundreds, including one that helped take his team, Gujarat Titans, to the finals.

With his unhurried, classical batting style, while never compromising on the team’s requirements, he finished more than 150 runs ahead of the next-best scorer in the League. He had the highest average among the top 10 batters. And only two people managed better strike rates than his.

The Kolkata Knight Riders decision to let him go, in 2021, now ranks as arguably the worst call by a franchise in the short history of the league.

Gill has been compared to Virat Kohli, and the IPL provided the intense and wonderful experience of a single match in which both men scored centuries (Kohli for Royal Challengers Bangalore; Gill in a winning chase).

He’s been compared to Sachin Tendulkar, and referred to as the next heir apparent in the unbroken line of India’s batting greats.

Gill also has the makings of a cultural icon. He has the looks of a yesteryear actor, and a preternatural sense of timing that makes his batting look beautiful. He plays brilliantly off the back foot and the front, and has a razor-sharp vision of how to dissect the field.

His presence on the field is unassuming and gentle. Gill rarely shows emotion, displaying utter calm in even high-stakes, frenzied match conditions.

When he got out in the first innings of the WTC final, leaving a ball that took his stump — a dismissal batters loathe — he betrayed no sentiment.

Despite the World Test Championship showing, this signals something quite delicious in a sportsperson: a mind prepared for almost anything. All in all, he has what it takes to dominate the pitch for a long time to come.

But in order for that to happen, Gill must first be allowed to belong, especially in India’s Test squad. The position he bats in — that of opener — gets the treatment of a revolving door in a silent-era comedy. Since 2018, India has tried KL Rahul, Hanuma Vihari, Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, Rohit Sharma, Gill and, once, even Cheteshwar Pujara in this slot.

Gill deserves not to be spun around; he deserves the chance to make the position his own, failures and all.