Rain has had the final say in three of the matches of ongoing India vs New Zealand limited-overs series. While the first T20I was abandoned without a ball being bowled, the third T20I came to an abrupt end with at tie whereas the 2nd ODI could not produce a result. Recently, several matches in T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia were abandoned or affected due to rain which sparked the debate whether closed roofs should be installed in the stadiums. Shubman Gill who missed his half-century by just five runs had his say about the matter too.
"This is a decision (playing in indoor stadiums) to be taken by the boards. As a player and as fans, it is irritating to go in and out and see so many matches being affected by rain. But I don’t know how I can take a stand for it as it is a big decision.
"Obviously closed (retractable) roof (stadiums) would be good," the Indian opener told the reporters in the post-match press conference on November 27.
The youngster expressed his frustration over switching on and off due to rain interruptions as he said, “It was very frustrating. You don't know how many overs so you can't plan your innings.”
After scoring a half-century in the first ODI, Gill scored an unbeaten 45 off 42 deliveries in the second ODI including four fours and one six. India had 89/1 on the board after 12.5 overs before the game was called off due to the rain.
The 23-year-old also talked about calls to change India's batting template in ODIs in order to post big totals.
“The totals like 400 to 450 will happen in one or two games a year. More or less, it will be targets around 300 plus range, which are more probable ones. It also depends on conditions that you are batting -- first batting or chase. But 400 plus scores in every match isn't an achievable target," he said.
Gill was asked about his place in the ODI squad when the senior players return. Skipper Rohit Sharma and stand-in skipper Shikhar Dhawan are expected to open the innings which will leave Gill as a back-up opener. Gill is not thinking too far ahead as he wants to cash in on opportunities he is currently getting.
"I am not looking that far ahead and my aim is to make most of the opportunities that I am getting. That's what I am trying to do and make most of the opportunities that I get, trying to score big runs for the team," he said.
