India captain Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans (GT) teammate, Jos Buttler, shared an interesting detail about Gill’s training routine ahead of the third Test between England and India, scheduled to start on Thursday, July 10, at the historic Lord’s. Reflecting on Gill’s preparation methods, Buttler highlighted the specific drills the Indian skipper used to perform during the IPL in between matches.
“Whatever he’s doing is working. So I’d be like I want the same guy to give me throwdowns, want to do the same routine that I did. Having played a little bit with him in the IPL, he does a lot of basic drills and does a lot of underarm drills, just grooving his shape.”
“You’d think why would a Test cricketer be doing underarm drills but it’s just the muscle memory, moving into the right positions, hitting the ball late, that’s something he talks about a lot and practices a lot. Hit the ball to the ground and let the ball come to him, which is a trait of all the best players. He’ll be doing lot of those kind of drills,” he said on the ‘For The Love Of Cricket‘ Podcast.
Buttler highlighted that Shubman Gill amassed almost as many runs in just two Tests (585) as Virat Kohli did over the entire 2018 series (593). He also mentioned that Gill’s father played a key role in shaping his early cricketing journey, acting as both a mentor and coach.
“We hope as England fans that he doesn’t go on and break more records. We need to find answers to get him out. As a batter when you’re in that space you feel untouchable. You want to keep that momentum and energy on your side. Stay in that bubble.”
“His dad has been quite influential and been a coach of his while growing up so I’m sure he’s got a couple of phone calls from him saying keep playing. He’ll be someone who he’ll be turning to and leaning on for his game,” he stated. (45:40)
Jos Buttler Believes Shubman Gill’s Talent Surpasses His Stats
During the same discussion, Jos Buttler noted that although much was said about Shubman Gill‘s statistics before the series, he believes Gill’s true abilities go beyond what the numbers reflect.
“The sort of hunger and determination from Gill to score a massive double and then to come out again in the second innings. Becoming captain, there’s a lot talked about his record. He’s a better player than his records show and he’s changed it around quickly.”
“It doesn’t look like he’s got any technical deficiencies at the moment. Jofra Archer will be coming back. He got Shubman bowled in the IPL, nipping it back through the gate. That kind of always felt like the area (to bowl to him),” he reflected. (9:14)
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