‘He is the most complete athlete I have seen’ – Team India’s fielding coach heaps praise on Shubman Gill

Many eyes will be on Shubman Gill when India takes on New Zealand in the ICC World Test Championship final later this month. It would indeed be a test of character as he has played just a handful of international matches.

Moreover, England hasn’t been a pleasant place for Test openers in the last few years. Hence, the Fazilka-born Gill, who’ll face the likes of Trent Boult, Tim Southee, and Neil Wagner in the summit clash, has a job in hand.

With an experience of seven Tests, Shubman is fairly new to international cricket but has earned praises from many experts around the globe. While there aren’t many flaws in his batting technique, his fielding prowess has been impressive as well. Speaking of the same, India’s fielding coach R Sridhar called Gill a ‘complete athlete.’

Shubman Gill has gotten good hand-eye coordination: R Sridhar

“Talking about Shubman, I feel he is the most complete athlete I have seen. He is slim, tall, runs fast, and has got good hand-eye coordination. On most occasions when a new player comes in – we know his strengths and weaknesses as we would have seen him play in the IPL or in India ‘A,” said Sridhar in a chat with the Times of India.

“My job as the fielding coach is to make sure his mindset is in tune with the national team. We also observe his hand-eye coordination, his reflexes, how good his hands are, his speed to the ball and ability to throw from the deep and ball sense,” he added.

Gill is often spotted as a close-in fielder when the spinners are in business. Owing to his quick reflexes, the 21-year-old tends to react swiftly and attack the ball. Although spinners aren’t known to get a lot of help in England, Gill will indeed have some work to do in the third or fourth day with Ravi Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in operation.

Meanwhile, the Indian team will fly to England on June 2 for the WTC final and the five-match Test series against the Three Lions. However, Virat Kohli’s men will have to undergo a 10-day quarantine period upon their arrival. Hence, they won’t get much time to prepare for the ultimate battle against the Kiwis, which gets underway on June 18 at the Rose Bowl in Southampton.