Shubman Gill turns 26: How India's rising superstar has made his mark across all formats

New Delhi [India], September 8 (ANI): India's young batting superstar and Test skipper Shubman Gill, who turned 26 on Monday, has been turning heads for his consistent performances and sky-high shots right from his days as a budding under-19 prodigy, whose playing style is largely based on the mould of his idols, Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.

With a short-arm jab worth being replayed a billion times, a cover drive that looks as mesmerising as his predecessors and a pull shot that screams pure dominance and authority, Gill is the newest poster boy of Indian cricket, as his seniors Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli enter the twilight of their decorated careers. These three shots are just a tip of the iceberg as far as Gill's shot variety is concerned. The finesse, touch and access to all parts of the ground have been inherited by the 'Prince' from the ones who came before him. Safe to say, these shots are in the right hands and would be instrumental in several future batting records.

In 113 international matches since his debut in 2019, Gill has scored 6,000 international runs at an average of 46.15, with a strike rate of 79.88, with 18 centuries and 25 fifties in 145 innings. His best score is 269.

Let us witness how Gill has emerged as a dominant force in each format:

-An U19 prodigy

The Punjabi hitter made it to the first-class side for his state at the age of 18, way before he was tagged in as a deputy for Prithvi Shaw in the ICC U19 2018 World Cup. Gill showcased his class immediately, with a fifty on debut and a stroke-filled 129 in the very next game.

During the U19 WC 2018 win in New Zealand, Gill outshone his captain, winning the 'Player of the Tournament' prize with 372 runs in five innings at an astonishing average of 124.00, with a strike rate of over 112.38, including a century and three fifties. He also secured the 'Player of the Tournament' for his exploits, which included a coveted century against arch-rivals Pakistan in the semifinals.

-An ODI monster on the rise

In an age where ODIs are getting lesser, with cash-rich and shorter T20Is getting more attention and TV time, Gill is that one player which makes one crave ODIs all year. With his elite strokeplay, excellence in starting out in powerplay with skipper Rohit Sharma and navigation of middle overs modelled after Virat, Gill is a perfect ODI package.

In 55 ODIs, Gill has scored 2,775 runs at an average of 59.04, with a strike rate of almost 100. This includes eight centuries and 15 fifties, with the best score of 208. Smashing this double ton against New Zealand back in 2023, Gill became the youngest double centurion in ODIs at the age of 23 years and 132 days. His ODI average is the second-highest of all time and the best among players with at least a minimum 50 ODIs played and 2,000-plus runs scored.

He is also the fastest to 2,000 ODI runs, in just 38 innings.

Gill was the leading wicket-taker in India's 2023 Asia Cup win, with 302 runs in six innings at an average of 75.50, including a century against Bangladesh in a tricky chase and two fifties.

He played a crucial role in India's ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 campaign, in which they finished runners-up, scoring 354 runs in nine matches at an average of 44.25 and a strike rate of 106.94, with four fifties, including one against New Zealand in the semis. With 188 runs in five matches at an average of 47.00, he was India's key contributor in the ICC Champions Trophy win. His most notable contribution was a century against Bangladesh.

-A future leader in Test cricket

Gill's start in Test cricket was a rocking one, emerging as one of India's brightest young stars during their 2-1 series win in Australia in 2020-21. His cracking, counter-attacking 91 at Brisbane, which enabled India to chase down 328 at Brisbane and hand Aussies their first Test defeat at the venue over 32 years was a massive highlight of his early Test career, which largely remained underwhelming despite a fruitful run at home as a number three last year, because of his poor overseas performances away from comfort of Asian pitches.

However, when Gill was appointed as Test captain for the recently concluded Test tour to England, Gill changed the script with his captaincy, writing a memorable redemption arc with each stroke.

Gill ended up as a leading run-getter in the series, with a massive 754 runs in 10 innings at an average of 75.40 and four centuries, including a marathon effort of 269 and 161 during India's maiden win at Birmingham in the second Test. The series ended in a 2-2 draw, just when everyone had counted a new-look India out, who were without senior stars like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin and Mohammed Shami. Gill's leadership, calm and tactics, shone bright in this series.

His exploits in the series helped him tear into batting record books like no other player. His 269 is the highest score by an Indian outside the Indian subcontinent, outdoing Sachin Tendulkar's iconic 241* against Australia at Sydney, and is also the highest score by an Indian in England, outdoing Sunil Gavaskar's 221 at The Oval and also the highest score by an Indian skipper, outdoing Virat's 254 against South Africa in 2019. Within one swoop, Gill outclassed three respected and worshipped generations of Indian cricket.

Gill produced the second-highest aggregate of runs in a single Test (430 runs), below England's Graham Gooch (456 runs after scoring 333 and 123 against India at Lord's back in 1990) and has the highest runs aggregate by an Indian in a Test match. He became the first player in Test history to score both a 250-plus and a 150-plus in the same match.

The youngster's 754 runs are worth their weight in gold, standing as the most successful South Africa, England, New Zealand and South Africa (SENA) tour by an Indian batter.

During the series, Gill overtook Gavaskar's 732-run campaign against West Indies at home in 1978/79 series for the most runs by an Indian captain in a series. Gill's campaign was also the second-best amount of runs by an Indian in a Test series (at the top being Gavaskar with 774 runs against the West Indies in 1971). Also, after Don Bradman's 810 runs against England in 1936/37, this was the second-highest runs by a captain in a Test series.

His century count of four in the series was the joint-most by a captain alongside Aussie legend Don Bradman and Gavaskar. He also joined Gavaskar and Virat for the most centuries by an Indian during a Test series. Gill also became the first player to hit four hundreds in their debut Test series as captain.

This series also made him the only Indian after Rohit Sharma with a double century in Tests and ODIs and a ton in T20Is.

In 37 Tests, Gill has scored 2,647 runs at an average of 41.35 and a healthy strike rate of 61.42, with nine centuries and seven fours in 69 innings. With his MRF bat in his hand, the number four spot once guarded by Sachin and Virat is in the right hands.

-A T20I leader in the making

Captaining Gujarat Titans (GT) since past two seasons and now India's vice-captain in Asia Cup, he is a future T20I captain in the making. In 21 T20Is, he has scored 578 runs at an average of 30.42, with a strike rate of 139.27, including a century and three fifties. His century against NZ in early-2023 made him the youngest all-format centurion at the age of 23.

Over last three seasons, Gill has achieved immense improvement in his T20 game, unlocking a new gear with Gujarat Titans (GT), securing the IPL title with them in their debut season in 2022. With 2,449 runs in 60 matches including four centuries and 16 fifties in 60 innings at a strike rate of almost 150, he is GT's top run-getter. He also won the 'Orange Cap' and 'Player of the Tournament' honours for his 890-run, four century season in 2023, giving him the second-best tally in a single IPL season by a player.

Combining runs with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Gill has already scored 3,866 runs in 118 matches at an average of 39.44, at a strike rate of 138.71, with four centuries and 26 fifties.

How much strides will Gill make during the remainder of his career? (ANI)

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