Shubman Gill deserves to play the rest of NZ series, says Sourav Ganguly

Indian domestic cricket star Shubman Gill, who has been picked for the ODI and T20I series against New Zealand is ready for the big stage, according to the former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly.

He had scored 372 runs and helped India lift the Under-19 World Cup in 2018, Ganguly believes that Shubman Gill deserves a chance and should play the rest of the matches in New Zealand.

In a post-match chat show on India.TV, the former Indian captain said “I think they should play Shubman Gill, he certainly deserves a chance in the team. He should play the rest of the series. Who knows, India might get another good player for the World Cup.”

The 19-year-old Gill who plays for Punjab also made his mark in the Ranji Trophy with a 328-ball 268 against Tamil Nadu. In his first season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2018, he scored 203 runs for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

Ganguly added that “Virat Kohli has also said that he didn’t bat like Gill when he was his age, which is a great thing to say for a captain.”

In the post-match conference, Virat Kohli had earlier said that “I think there are some outstanding talents. We saw Prithvi Shaw grab the opportunity with both hands. Shubman is a very exciting talent and I saw him bat in the nets and I was like wow I was not even ten per cent of that when I was 19.”

Earlier, on his selection to the Indian cricket team, he said “I think having played in New Zealand will be an advantage. I am familiar with the conditions because I have just travelled to New Zealand with India A squad. I also played the Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand last year.”