England, with a series win already secured, can complete South Africa's ignominious fall from the top of the rankings when the final Test of the four-match series starts at Centurion Park in Pretoria on Friday.
Gavaskar hoped that Gill would find his range sooner than later.
Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane were part of India's Test team till earlier this year, but were left out of the tour to South Africa, the selectors pinning hopes on youngsters Shubman Gill and Yashawi Jaiswal to produce the goods in challenging conditions.
Team India registered their biggest winning margin in the history of Test cricket during the third Test against England at Rajkot on Sunday.
Injury to Temba Bavuma also thrust Elgar back into the captain's role that was taken away from him last February.
The defeat in the Centurion Test was India's fifth in a row in SENA countries under Head Coach Rahul Dravid.
A desperate India seek to restore parity against South Africa and remain consequential in the World Test Championship.
Skipper Shubman Gill struck a sublime half-century, while off-spinner Washington Sundar returned with tidy figures of 3/15 as India outclassed Zimbabwe by 23 runs.
Star India batter Virat Kohli reached another landmark on day one of the first Test match against South Africa in Centurion on Tuesday to become the highest run-getter for India in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2019-2025.
India will endeavour to become the only visiting side apart from England to win a Test match at SuperSport Park in Centurion when the three-Test series gets underway on Thursday.
South Africa have told the groundsman at Supersport Park at Centurion to leave some grass on the pitch to have a bit of bounce for the first Test against India starting on December 16, a report said.
Eight of South Africa's top cricket stadiums, including Wanderers in Johannesburg, Durban's Kingsmead and Newlands in Cape Town, have been confirmed as venues for the 2027 ICC ODI World Cup, a News24 report said on Wednesday.
The players were cheered by fans at the airport and obliged supporters with selfies.
South African opener Aiden Markram is of the opinion that the pitch at Supersport Park, although aiding more pace and bounce, will also be good for batsmen.
Test cricket will see two players featuring in their 100th game together for only the fourth time when India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and England batter Jonny Bairstow take the field in Dharamsala on Thursday.
Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill did not forget to mention that they were 15 runs short while batting, as the net run-rate did not witness a quantum leap despite their 35-run victory over Chennai Super Kings in the IPL match in Ahmedabad on Friday.
Travis Head returns to boost Australia's World Cup hopes
'You want a certain type of wicket when you play at home and when you don't get it you still have to perform. The guys have worked hard, they have toiled a little bit when they have had to'
Accumulating 500 wickets in 218 international appearances, Rabada maintains an average of 24.79
IMAGES from the 3rd ODI played between Sri Lanka and India, in Colombo, on Wednesday.
An irate India captain Virat Kohli lost his cool and snapped at the scribes in a fiery media session after the series defeat against South Africa, his first reverse as full-time skipper.
Shashank Singh says his ability to pick the bowlers and take the game deep helped him produce the blistering unbeaten 68 off 28 balls which played a big role in Punjab Kings's record-breaking eight-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL match in Kolkata on Friday.
England skipper Ben Stokes' direct hit to dismiss Ravindra Jadeja wasn't just the turning point of the first Test but could also be one that decides the course of the series as India's No 1 all-rounder across formats was seen struggling with a hamstring niggle.
Amy Hunter became the youngest player to score an ODI century on Monday, when she hit an unbeaten 121 to guide Ireland victory over Zimbabwe on her 16th birthday, in Harare.
South Africa shredded through the Indian batting line-up to claim victory by an innings and 32 runs in the first Test.
Kagiso Rabada grabbed a five-wicket haul before K L Rahul rallied India to 208/8 on a rain-hit Day 1 of the first Test.
India inflicted a crushing 10-wicket defeat on South Africa in the one-off Women's Test in Chennai
South Africa meet India in Centurion in the opening Test starting on December 26 before moving to Cape Town for the second match from January 3.
After several losses in the early years of the new century, a resurgent India notched up two consecutive series wins in Australia to become the Aussies' nemesis.
India descended to the 6th position in the ICC World Test Championship points table due to a 2-point penalty
Team India is in Cape Town intensively preparing for the match at Newlands, which begins on Wednesday. In a rigorous training session, players exhibited resilience, showcasing their determination to bounce back.
'I knew it wasn't going to be an easy series. Three more to go. We'll keep our check on it and make sure we do most things right.'
South Africa is set for a fairytale farewell as Dean Elgar takes the helm in the final Test against India
Captain Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers shared a record unbroken double-century stand as South Africa took control of the first Test against West Indies on the opening day at Centurion on Wednesday.
VIn a dramatic turn of events on Day 3, India faced a resounding defeat against South Africa in the first Test as their batting lineup crumbled, managing only 131 runs in the second innings after the hosts posted a formidable 408 in their initial essay.
Ajinkya Rahane might have endured a wretched run with the willow but he was the "happiest man" at the Wankhede on Thursday, having led Mumbai to their 42nd Ranji Trophy title.
He should have played ahead of Shardul Thakur and Prasidh Krishna in the Test series opener against South Africa but when Mukesh Kumar finally got his chance at Newlands, the Indian team realised what exactly it missed during the mauling in Centurion.
The pacer took 4-60 as India were bowled out for 307 runs in their first innings, conceding a 28-run lead. The hosts finished at 90/2, leading overall by 118.
Kohli is known to come to nets with specific purpose and on Monday, it seemed he wanted to extensively bat against a left-arm pacer.
