India captain Shubman Gill confirmed that they would like to keep the eighth batting option in ODI cricket but will continue to experiment with combinations before finding the one they want. He said this in the wake of his team's dominant eight-wicket win to start their ODI series against the West Indies on Sunday.
Virat Kohli played a record 55th ODI century, and Gill himself scored 110 from 108 balls to see India chase down the target comfortably. However, the captain expressed that he would have preferred to remain unbeaten and finish the game after getting out soon after reaching his century.
Shubman Gill explains India's No. 8 batting plan
“Ideally, yes. We would want another eight batting option, who can help us get at least 25-30 runs,” said Gill after the match.
“Because we know that we have been in situations when we were 250 for 5 and then couldn't get the runs. So the 8th wicket becomes a very important batting position for us. But we are not afraid to try out different combinations and see which works for us,” he added.
Gill's century helped India chase down the target, but the captain was disappointed to have not batted till the end.
“Actually, when I got out, I felt that it would have been nice to finish it up. But, honestly, a very good feeling to get that hundred,” Gill replied when asked about his feelings on the matter.
Gill showered praises on his teammate Kohli, who completed his 15,000 runs in ODI with a century. Gill believed that the veteran batsman was enjoying his batting at this stage of his career.
“He is loving every moment of his batting, playing with freedom, and enjoying the game, and those are the things that have a tremendous impact on his batting. He has always had that game in him, he always had the power to clear the boundaries, and I feel he is doing the same now,” said Gill.
“Someone like Virat, who has won so many games for us, and done it over and over again, all we need to do is leave him alone, and let him play freely because whenever he feels like it, he can win games for us,” added the Indian Captain.
Gill expressed his gratitude towards Kuldeep for changing the course of the game when West Indies were in a strong position and had scored 135 without losing a single wicket.
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“Someone like Kuldeep, especially in the middle overs, if he is bowling, he is a wicket-taker for us, and he has shown that time and again, including today,” said Gill.
“We were in a pretty bad position chasing that huge opening stand and that brilliant top order. But he came in, and changed the entire game for us, he got us the important wickets for us to start restricting them. And at one time, it looked like they would get 340-350, but we fought well together to stop them at 300,” he added.
Kuldeep, on the other hand, was pretty happy with his rhythm and how he read the batter's shot selection on the day. He felt that his variations were on point, and he was able to get wickets with his variations and line and length.
“I liked my rhythm, to be very honest. My rhythm was very good; I was very calm in the rhythm, and I was trying to bowl different speeds, depending on the situation, and the variations were superb. I was reading the batters and where they wanted to hit the ball,” said Kuldeep.
West Indies' captain Shai Hope expressed his frustration with not being able to make the most of the brilliant batting track that they have in India.
“We could definitely have put more runs on the board, considering we came in on such a good surface. When you come in on good surfaces like these, here in India, you have to put a good score on the board. But we were maybe 60-80 runs short, to be fair,” said Hope.