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Star batter Shubman Gill's captaincy debut in the IPL 2024 was a mixed bag. He led the Gujarat Titans to a thrilling win over his predecessor Hardik Pandya's Mumbai Indians, but were jolted by a loss to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Gill, the previous season's most run getter, has yet to hit his stride with the bat, scoring only 31 and 8 in his first two matches. Despite the mid-table position, the Titans will look to climb the ranks when they face the formidable Sunrisers Hyderabad this Sunday.
In his new role as captain, Shubman Gill's batting performance hasn't quite taken off yet. After claiming the Orange Cap last season, he managed just 31 and 8 runs in his first two outings against Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings respectively. Despite this, the Gujarat Titans have managed to secure one win, placing them at the seventh spot on the current IPL table. They'll be looking to climb the rankings when they face a strong Sunrisers Hyderabad team on March 31.
Adding some pre-match intrigue, Gary Kirsten, Titans' head coach, shared his thoughts on Gill's initial captaincy stint. Kirsten highlighted the importance of making quick tactical decisions in the fast-paced T20 format, and believes Gill is still learning the ropes of this crucial captaincy skill.
“It's a fast game. You are making tactical decisions on a regular basis. It's not like Test cricket where it unfolds over a long period of time,” Kirsten, who played an instrumental role in India's title triumph in ODI World Cup 2011, said in the pre-match conference on March 30.
"I've been really impressed with the way he's conducted himself as a leader," Kirsten added.
According to coach Kirsten, Gill has smoothly transitioned into his new role as captain after taking over from Hardik Pandya.
“I think he's embraced it (captaincy) really well. He's shown some good leadership qualities. He's a smart guy. He's a young captain, and there's lots to learn, especially in T20. So, he'll learn along the way.”
Coach Kirsten acknowledged the Titans' poor performance in their recent loss to the Super Kings, highlighting the significant impact it had on their net run rate.
"As with any cricket team, you want to play to the best of your ability. We weren't good enough that day (against CSK). I think we've acknowledged that and we've had our conversations around what we need to make sure that we are better to gain from our skills. Every team has different kinds of strengths and we didn't show that in the CSK game and we just got to move on," Kirsten concluded.
Talking about GT's performance in the ongoing IPL 2024, they started off with a stunning win over five-time champions Mumbai Indians only to suffer defeat in their following match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on March 26. Shubman's GT will look to bounce back in their next encounter against Pat Cummins' SRH in Ahmedabad on March 31. Notably both the teams have clashed with each other three times in which GT have emerged victorious twice while SRH have won just once.
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