Ravichandran Ashwin breaks down Shubman Gill’s technique, points to real reason behind ODI skipper's dismissal

India's legendary all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin turned Shubman Gill’s dismissal in the third ODI against New Zealand into a detailed lesson on modern-day batting, explaining how small, often unnoticed adjustments can affect a batter when moving between formats.

Ashwin on Gill's batting in the 3rd ODI

Notably, India's ODI captain Shubman Gill managed to score 23 runs before getting dismissed by Kyle Jamieson in the seventh over. Ashwin took his X (formerly Twitter) to share thoughts after former India captain Sunil Gavaskar spoke about Gill’s bat position during the broadcast. Responding to that discussion.

“Sunny bhai is talking about how Shubman’s bat was really close to the pad in England where he made all his runs," before adding, “I am going to try and illustrate the challenge for a modern-day batter, the changes which happen automatically most of the times when you shift in & out of red-ball cricket" wrote Ashwin.

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Ashwin on where Gill is lacking

Breaking the dismissal down step by step, Ashwin explained that in the first frame, Gill was in his natural setup, which was a position shaped by years of practice. His bat was coming down from the gully, allowing him to play straight through the line of the ball. In the next frame, Ashwin noted that Gill had read the delivery early and adjusted well, lining up the bat perfectly and putting himself in a strong position.

According to Ashwin, the issue started just after that moment. He said the bat needed to start moving inward to close the gap between the bat and the pad, especially with the ball angling back in. In the third image, that gap started to open, and Ashwin pointed out that Gill would have already sensed the danger as the ball pitched and jagged back sharply.

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Ashwin's suggestion to Shubman Gill

Ashwin believes that the fix didn’t require a big movement, but a small adjustment of the hands. He explained that Gill needed to slightly loosen his bottom hand and bring his hands closer to his pad to deal with the late inward movement. The fourth image, Ashwin said, showed why that correction didn’t come in time.

“If you see closely, the bottom hand, which is supposed to be used for dexterity, hasn’t loosened up and allowed the last-minute adjustment," Ashwin wrote. “Even though he wants to shut the gap down, his bottom hand, which is firm on the handle, isn’t allowing him to do it."

Ashwin was quick to put the dismissal in context and avoid making it a bigger issue than it was. “This is what happened now, but he managed to address this while he was playing Tests in England," he noted, making it clear that such things can happen.

He went on to call Gill a “fab player” and added that these lapses are often down to brief moments of awareness, especially when players move between formats. Gill finished the series with 145 runs across three matches.