From a small village in Punjab to U19 World Cup, Shubman Gill recalls his journey

Promising India batsman Shubman Gill was given a call back to the senior squad in the first Test against New Zealand.

While he did not get the opportunity, he had impressed one and all with his batting for India A. Now, given a chance to be part of the ODI series against South Africa, it will only be on team management to see, if he could be part of the playing XI.

Ahead of the first ODI against South Africa, Human of Bombay shared the story of how from a small village in Punjab, Shumbam Gill made it to U19 World Cup.

The U19 World Cup winner has recalled his journey and how his first coach - his dad - was the best ever. Gill said, “I grew up in a small village in Punjab where my dad began coaching me from a very young age. To make sure I practised cricket every day, he’d call the neighbouring kids to bowl -- bribing them to take me out, but they never could! I won my first cricket match when I was 9 years old. It was just a local match, but I can never forget how it felt! Dad always believed that I’d make a good batsman someday. So when I was 7, we moved to Mohali -- where I could get more opportunities to play.

"Slowly, I began participating in district and state-level tournaments. At the age of 11, I was already playing for 16 U 16s, where I was the second-highest scorer. And by the 6th grade, I was playing for multiple clubs. Mom and dad never pressured me into studying; they helped me balance both and made sure I wasn’t stretched too thin. In fact, dad was there all along -- right from coaching me to making sure I had the best cricket gear and equipment".

 

 

 

 

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“I grew up in a small village in Punjab where my dad began coaching me from a very young age. To make sure I practiced cricket everyday, he’d call the neighboring kids to bowl -- bribing them to take me out, but they never could! I won my first cricket match when I was 9 years old. It was just a local match, but I can never forget how it felt! Dad always believed that I’d make a good batsman some day. So when I was 7, we moved to Mohali -- where I could get more opportunities to play. Slowly, I began participating in district and state level tournaments. At the age of 11, I was already playing for 16 U 16s, where I was the second highest scorer. And by the 6th grade, I was playing for multiple clubs. Mom and dad never pressured me into studying; they helped me balance both and made sure I wasn’t stretched too thin. In fact, dad was there all along -- right from coaching me to making sure I had the best cricket gear and equipment. I’d juggle between school, studies and practice while also playing different tournaments all across the country. This went on till the 10th grade, after which I got selected in the U19 World Cup -- it was such a surreal experience to live both dad’s and my dream! And when they announced that I was the ‘Player of the Series’, I couldn’t stop thinking about how a boy from a small town had made it so big -- and I owed it all to dad, who taught me to love the game! After I came back, nothing was the same. My family couldn’t be more proud -- dad was smiling from cheek to cheek all the time and everyone was gathered at home, cheering me on! It was such a humbling moment! Recently, I met Rahul Dravid Sir who told me, ‘You’ve been batting really well. I’ve been watching your matches.’ When I asked him where I could improve, he asked me to carry on the way I have and trust my game. That’s when I realized that a player is only as good as his coach. And little did I know I’ve had the best coach all along -- my dad!”

A post shared by Humans of Bombay (@officialhumansofbombay) on Mar 11, 2020 at 10:27pm PDT

Gill also spoke about getting selected in the U19 squad and becoming the 'Player of the Series'. He said, "I’d juggle between school, studies and practice while also playing different tournaments all across the country. This went on till the 10th grade, after which I got selected in the U19 World Cup -- it was such a surreal experience to live both dad’s and my dream! And when they announced that I was the ‘Player of the Series’, I couldn’t stop thinking about how a boy from a small town had made it so big -- and I owed it all to dad, who taught me to love the game!

"After I came back, nothing was the same. My family couldn’t be more proud -- dad was smiling from cheek to cheek all the time and everyone was gathered at home, cheering me on! It was such a humbling moment!"

Gill also said that how Rahul Dravid's advice helped him in cricket. "Recently, I met Rahul Dravid Sir who told me, ‘You’ve been batting really well. I’ve been watching your matches.’ When I asked him where I could improve, he asked me to carry on the way I have and trust my game. That’s when I realized that a player is only as good as his coach. And little did I know I’ve had the best coach all along -- my dad!”

As India's ODI series against South Africa, the first will be played in Dharamsala on Thursday.