'At least your debut was better than mine' - Shubman Gill recalls MS Dhoni's morale-boosting words after forgettable debut

Emerging batter Shubman Gill has explained how veteran skipper MS Dhoni’s words of motivation turned out to be a huge morale-booster for him after he failed on his international debut in January 2019 against New Zealand.

Gill talked about having insecurities about his future after getting out for nine runs off 21 balls against the Kiwis at Hamilton, which the Men in Blue went on to lose by eight wickets. That is when Dhoni reminded Gill that he was run out for a golden duck on his international debut against Bangladesh in December 2004.

I was touched by MS Dhoni’s gesture: Shubman Gill

“The day I made by debut, I was dismissed when India were around 15. I was sitting outside and was sad having scored just 9 runs in my debut. So Mahi bhai came and saw that I was very sad. I was then around 18-19 years old. He told me at least your debut was better than mine," said Gill while speaking to Sonam Bajwa on her chat show  'Dil Diyan Gallan'.

"I realised he was dismissed for golden duck in his debut. He did not face a single ball and was run out. Then he started laughing and joking and I was touched by that gesture,” he added. 

Gill is currently athepart of the Indian squad for T20I series against New Zealand. The series opener at Wellington had to be abandoned due to rain and the next game will be held at the Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui on Sunday, November 20.

Gill would be hoping to create a good impression by scoring some vital runs in this series as the Indian team management starts to groom players in the shortest format with an eye on the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in the Caribbean and USA. The Indian team captained by Hardik Pandya are fielding a second-string side with key players rested.