Ind Vs Aus 3rd Test: Harbhajan Singh defends Shubman Gill after poor show in Indore

Former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh defended Shubman Gill after his underwhelming performance in the Third Test match of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Playing on Indore’s spin-friendly pitch, he showed promise in his 21-run innings as he hit three boundaries and his strike rate was more than 100. In the first innings, left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann bagged his wicket while Nathan Lyon bowled him out in the second.


Speaking on Star Sports, Harbhajan supported the Indian opener. He said that Shubman’s decision to attack against the bowlers was the right one. He asserted that playing with a defensive mindset would not have worked. Someone like Cheteshwar Pujara, who is known for his defensive batting, was using his feet throughout the innings. He remarked that someone batting on 70 or 80 would have gotten out playing an odd delivery on this pitch.



After much deliberation, Shubman Gill was added to the playing 11 as an opener, replacing KL Rahul. The reason behind this move was Rahul being out-of-form for the last few months, while Gill has been absolutely brilliant in the shorter formats this year. Although Gill scored 21 runs in his first innings, he still was the second-highest run getter after Virat Kohli.


The Indian batting line-up folded at a meagre score of 109 in the first innings, which ended on the first day itself. The situation was not much better in the second as the Indian batters managed to make 163 runs only. Australia won the match comfortably as they were given a target of 76 runs in their second innings. The five-day match ended on its third day. India is still ahead of Australia as the series stands at 2-1. The visitors will look forward to ending the series on 2-2 as they head out for the Fourth Test, which will be held at Ahmedabad, Gujarat from March 9.

FAQs:

Q1- How old is Harbhajan Singh?
42 years.


Q2- How old is Shubman Gill?
23 years