Legendary Sunil Gavaskar showered praise on Shubman Gill after the right-hander scored a fine knock of 147 runs against England in the first innings of the opening Test match at Leeds, Headingley. 

The right-hander scored 19 fours and one six in his debut innings as India’s Test captain. The flamboyant batter also added 209 runs with Rishabh Pant, who scored a fine knock of 134. Earlier, Gill added 129 runs with Yashasvi Jaiswal.

After reaching his sixth Test century with a gorgeous drive, Gill celebrated in a typical fashion, taking a bow down towards the dressing room.

Sunil Gavaskar said on Sony Sports, “That little bow to the dressing room was a nice touch. It means so much, because those are the people you train with, run between the wickets with, and who’ve been part of your preparation. It was a gesture of appreciation—’thank you, guys, I wouldn’t have reached here without you.”

Gavaskar said Gill looks mature when he walks out to bat and feels the batter has also resolved his weakness around the off-stump.

“We’ve seen him (Shubman Gill) grow up in front of the camera—from the U-19 World Cup days to now anchoring a Test innings. Every time he walks out now, you can see how much more solid and mature he looks. Early on, he had a bit of a weakness around the off stump, often playing across the line and getting caught out. But now, he’s much more assured,” said Gavaskar.

“He’s looking absolutely gorgeous at the crease. That shot early on in his innings—playing straight down the ground—is not an easy one to execute. It showed just how well he was seeing the ball: the speed, the timing, the control—everything was spot on.”

Gill is batting unbeaten on six and he would look to deliver in the second innings.