Ahead of the Gujarat Titans’ third fixture of the season where they take on the Sunrisers Hyderabad, GT’s batting coach Gary Kirsten reveals he was impressed by how Shubman Gill has taken up his new role as captain and backed his batters to deliver following their loss against the Chennai Super Kings in their previous game.
Speaking to the media ahead of their first afternoon game of the season, Kirsten highlighted a key difference in captaincy when it comes to the T20 format in comparison to Tests. He said,” It’s a fast game. You are making tactical decisions regularly. It’s not like Test cricket where it unfolds over a long period”.
The coach also appreciated his young captain Gill who was appointed as the skipper of the Titans following Hardik Pandya’s all-cash trade to the Mumbai Indians, before the 2024 season. He said,” I’ve been impressed with the way he’s conducted himself as a leader”.
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“I think he’s embraced it (captaincy) 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,” added the former South African international.
The coach was also well aware the side’s performance was not good enough as they succumbed to a 63-run defeat against the defending champions, Chennai Super Kings at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai which also dented their net run rate. The batting coach acknowledged this by saying,” 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 conversations about 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 added
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“We have lost one match by a big margin. We have to make that up. We know that teams end up on the same points and you know one goes through (based on NRR). So, it’s something that we are constantly mindful of. But we’ll need a really good win somewhere,” Kirsten highlighted.
GT’s batting woes
The coach believes that the current batting set-up needs to be supported further instead of chopping and changing, which could prove detrimental in the long run. Kirsten recalled Sai Sudarshan’s knock against CSK in last year’s finals and believes the batters need to be given opportunities to flourish. He said, “Our top order has done well. The 96 that Sai Sudharsan made in the final last year was one of the better knocks that I’ve seen in T20. The most important thing is to give people an opportunity to showcase their skills”.
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He also added, “If you’re just blowing hot and cold and getting into crisis management because you haven’t won a game, it can get you into trouble very quickly. T20 is a high-risk game and you’ve got to allow the players to take a bit of risk”.
The ODI World Cup-winning coach further highlighted the importance of continuity and making sure that the players are comfortable in their positions without feeling the pressure of being dropped to allow them to play with full confidence.
Kirsten concluded by saying,” You got to back your players and believe what they can do. We’ve tried to build continuity in this programme in the GT squad and ensure that guys are comfortable in their positions and let them know that they’re being backed even though they might not fire all the time,” he added.
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