Shubman Gill's Test cricket journey hit a bump with an average of 32 before the England series, falling short of expectations for the batter.
In the first Test's first innings, Gill capitalised on Yashasvi Jaiswal's aggressive start, but after Jaiswal's exit, Gill's approach turned defensive.
Facing pressure to contribute, Gill attempted an assertive shot against debutant Tom Hartley, resulting in a caught dismissal at midwicket by Ben Duckett, ending his innings at 23 off 66 deliveries.
Expressing apprehension about Gill's approach, Kevin Pietersen emphasised the crucial nature of rotating the strike in Test cricket.
While recognising Gill's batting prowess, Pietersen advised the young cricketer to diversify his technique to prevent recurring issues with such dismissals.
Drawing on his experiences with Rahul Dravid, Pietersen offered valuable insights for the team management to consider in Gill's ongoing development.
'He has somebody in the dressing room who changed my game: Rahul Dravid. I don't know if he will watch this broadcast, but go and spend time with Gill and do the same stuff he talked to me about. Get him to hit the ball on the off-side, practice picking the lengths better, and rotation of the strike. Do things that will help him become a better player,' Pietersen said on JioCinema.
'He's a quality player in Shubman Gill, and no, I'm not disappointed in how he got out. I'm disappointed that he has not got that ability yet (to rotate strike). But then, he's a kid. Give him that ability; give him that structure. If he rotates the strike and learns that from Rahul Dravid, and if the latter takes him under his wings, the world is his,' Pietersen said.
Anil Kumble highlighted a flaw in Gill's technique. He emphasised the need for Gill to learn strike rotation, citing Cheteshwar Pujara and Rahul Dravid's examples and advising soft hands against the spinners.
'Un par dabaav badhta gaya aur vo strike rotate nahi kar paaye (The pressure kept on growing and he couldn't rotate strike). He will have to learn this. If he wants to bat at No 3, especially on Indian tracks where spinners will cause trouble, he will have to rotate strike,' Kumble pointed out.
'Even when he came out to bat yesterday, he took his time as you don't want to lose your wicket. He got stuck today as well. Wanted to play the release shot against the turn, which I don't think was the ideal shot. If he has to slot in that No. 3 role like Pujara or Dravid, he will have to rotate strike. He needs to play spin with soft hands and use his wrist. This is something he needs to add to his game,' Kumble said on Sports 18.
'What kind of a shot was he looking to play?' Sunil Gavaskar asked.
'One can understand if he was looking to play it in the air but it was just a badly executed on drive. He did all the hard work and then played a shot like that,' Gavaskar said.
Gill faces heightened scrutiny in the Test series, having secured just one century in home conditions and two overall.
