Team India’s spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule on Sunday cleared the air, providing an update on Shubman Gill‘s injury. The India Test captain did not take the field on the opening two days of the warm-up fixture over Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) XI but returned on the final day to bat as an opener on the final day of the practice game. Gill, 26, suffered a setback on the eve of the game after being hit on his right hand twice, and hence the management decided not to risk him.
On Sunday, Gill first had a lengthy practice session in the nets, and he returned to bat as an opener during India’s chase of 207. The right-handed batter returned with a knock of 44 before being dismissed.
After the six-wicket win in the warm-up fixture, India coach Bahutule said that Gill is perfectly fine, and that his not taking the field on the opening two days was all about putting safety first.
“I think it was just a precaution more than anything else. And he has been absolutely fine. He has been doing his training. And the management decided that we could just take that precaution of not putting him into that on the first day. And I think everything, the way he batted in the second inning was again, you know, flawless. And he is very much ready for the Test match,” Bahutule told reporters on Sunday after the end of the warm-up match.
‘Preparation’
Bahutule also shed light on Shubman’s preparation before a series, saying the Indian skipper doesn’t want to leave anything to chance ahead of the two-match series against Sri Lanka, beginning August 15.
“Shubman takes his preparation very seriously. And he is a very meticulous boy. And he understands that, whatever the demand is for that particular series, the attack has been successful for the Sri Lankan team. His preparation is done accordingly. So, the net bowlers who have come with us have a good opportunity to bowl Shubman. And we were running a few scenarios, and Shubman was responding to them. And I think this helps him to prepare,” Bahutule said.
“And that was our effort. And the lower-order bowlers, as you saw, Gurnoor and Sairaj did a good job of batting. So, there is a process. All the lower order bowlers, who basically bat in lower order, their contribution will always be very useful to achieve a good total in the test match. And that is the entire process. We are encouraging them to bat as much as possible in the nets,” he added.
The warm-up match saw Devdutt Padikkal put in a standout performance. India has been hit with a plethora of injuries with Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Sai Sudharsan all ruled out. On Sunday, Sarfaraz Khan was named as the latest addition to the squad as he replaced Sudharsan.
