IPL 2021 | Believe Shubhman Gill is just a match away from a big score, reveals Brian Lara
The cricketing great Brian Lara is of the opinion that Shubhman Gill is in form and is just a match away from a big score. Talking about Punjab KIngs, Lara said that the team has the capability to reach playoffs in spite of the fact that they are not playing great cricket at the moment.
Punjab Kings won by 5 wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders in match no 45 of the IPL 2021 on October 1. Shubhman Gill was dismissed scoring 7 runs on a brilliant inswinger from Arshdeep Singh. The form of Shubhaman Gill has been an issue of concern for the Kolkata-based franchise. He has managed to score only 239 runs in 12 matches. Commenting on the way things have panned out for Shubhman Gill, former cricketing great Brian Lara has said that Gill is just a match away from a big score and Kolkata should not consider replacing him.Â
“Gill is a bit unlucky and if you look at him bat, he is in some form. I believe he is just a match away from a big score. He gels really well with Iyer (Venkatesh) and I believe that both of them can take KKR to new heights. Replacing Gill now is not something that KKR should consider,” he said on the Star Sports show Game Plan.Â
This season has been a tough one for Punjab Kings. The team is fifth in the points table with 10 points from 12 games. Their batting has not been up to the mark and the heavy dependence on KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal has hurt them the most. Sharing his views on the team’s capability Lara stated that the team has the potential to reach playoffs in spite of the fact that they are not playing great cricket at the moment.Â
“I think their team has the capability even though they are not playing great cricket at the moment. Their batting has just always been their strength and that has come up very short. Nicholas Pooran and Chris Gayle have not being playing well. Even their captain KL Rahul has not been in good form since the resumption. Their batting is the one thing that they depended on in the past where they posted big totals and tried to defend it. But if they don’t post big runs on the board, they find it very difficult with the bowling attack that they have,” he explained.Â
Analyzing team performance, Lara opined that Punjab’s batting has been their biggest cause of concern. The batting unit is not clicking and that is the problem for the team.
“Ravi Bishnoi is performing well and Mohammed Shami as you know is a professional and they expect that from him. Their batting has to be clicking and if they do click they give themselves that slight chance. It does not mean that they can pull it off but they give themselves a better chance than they have been giving themselves in recent matches,” he concluded.