Shubman Gill and Najmul Hossain Shanto post-match press conference India vs Bangladesh, ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023

India player Shubman Gill  (English & Hindi) and Bangladesh Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto (English and Bengali) post-match press conference (English & Hindi) India vs Bangladesh, ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023

Shubman Gill post-match press conference

Shubman Gill post-match press conference transcript (English & Hindi)

[Reporter:] You’ve got your first World Cup half century. So, after two matches, your first half century is done.

It's your first half century in the world cup, what was your reaction?

[Shubman Gill:] Obviously felt nice. When I was a little sick, I was feeling a bit disappointed on missing out on those opportunities, but definitely felt nice to get some game time.

[Reporter:] The team seems to be very comfortable while chasing targets. Could you talk a bit about your approach and how confident you, Rohit, Virat seem? Just the approach while chasing, is it something that all of you are very comfortable with?

[Shubman Gill:] I mean, you can see how confident they are, the way they are scoring runs. Definitely, I think this is one of the things which was talked about, especially leading up to the World Cup, that we were not chasing that well, those big totals, but I think having won all the four matches while chasing, I think it's a great way to have that momentum with us in those big games that we'll have moving forward.

[Reporter:] Were all of you surprised when that wide was attempted with Virat being on the cusp of a 100?

[Shubman Gill:] I don't know if he intentionally tried to bowl wide or he was just trying to keep it tight and then went away.

[Reporter:] KL pulled off a splendid catch today. How vital is he in terms of the scheme of the team and the kind of keeping skills he brings to the table and as a batter? More on the keeping skills.

[Shubman Gill:] I mean, we have all seen his keeping skills. You know, he's someone who's constantly improving and working on his keeping. And we all saw that today when he took that catch. It's not easy for any wicketkeeper to take catches down the leg. And I think the way he's moving and the way he's keeping, It's quite brilliant.

[Reporter:] As an athlete, how hard is it to come back from such a falling ill and come back as soon as you did and play as well as you have so far? Could you talk about your journey over the last 15 days personally on that front?

[Shubman Gill:] I think you have to be mentally willing to go out there and that's what I was thinking when I was there. Lost a few kilos in the process but hopefully I'll be able to gain that back.

[Reporter:] Bowling wise in the middle overs we have turned it around very well. Against Australia after the early loss even David Warner and Steve Smith had a good partnership. Today same and even Pakistan they had a good start. Anything you want to say about middle over bowling and what is the strategy, cross seam bowling, and double spin attack? Anything?

[Shubman Gill:] Yeah, I think leading up to the World Cup, especially when we were playing in Sri Lanka, the wickets were assisting spin. But here, I don't think after the first match there was much assistance for the spinners. But the way they have bowled in the middle overs have been exceptional. And that's been actually game-changing for us. At one point, we were looking at maybe 300 - 320 the way their openers were batting but the way I think especially in the middle overs our bowlers are coming in especially spinners and getting us those crucial breakthroughs and keeping the pressure on the batsmen that's a big difference for us.

[Reporter:] Continuously since the past 4 matches we are bowling first and then batting. Do you have discussions with the team that you will bat first if you win the toss?

And another question related to that. Our next match is against New Zealand. We haven't won against them since the ICC tournament since 2003. So, if the team has discussed this?

[Shubman Gill:] We haven't discussed this much that we haven't won against them since the ICC tournament 2003, but hopefully we will try to change that in the next match. And I think when we bat first, we know which template to go with and we have made big scores regularly.

When we chase big scores, especially in big tournaments, it is important to chase. Once you gain confidence with the batsmen, it helps a lot in big matches.

The coach and the captain have a bigger role to play. We have to chase the opponent. We'll see how the wicket is and how the conditions will be for batting.

[Reporter:] Hardik Pandya was injured today, what is his condition now?

[Shubman Gill:] He went for a scan and is waiting for the result.

[Reporter:] Could you talk about the approach during the chase? Was there a set target in terms of the number of overs that you wanted to achieve? What were the conditions like, the pitch, did it change in the middle overs, in the first innings, second innings? And how was the outfield like?

[Shubman Gill:] I don't think the pitch changed much, honestly. It was a good batting wicket. The approach while chasing, Rohit has been batting exceptionally well and he's been all guns blazing, especially while chasing. And I think that's giving us the right momentum. And then it's easier for the batsmen who are coming in when the run rate is around four or five in chasing.

[Reporter:] According to you, whose catch is most spectacular and difficult among Jadeja and KL for you? And will you please share something and throw light on how much efforts you all are spending on improving fielding standards?

[Shubman Gill:] We all spend a lot of time on our fielding because I think as a batsman and a bowler, as a batsman I don't know how many balls I will face in the match but I know for sure that I will be there for 50 overs and I will field for 50 overs. Same for bowlers, they know that they are going to bowl maybe 8, 9, 10 overs but they have to field for 50 overs and as a cricketer I think it's a very important skill and we keep we keep upping our fielding skills whenever we get the chance and I think both the catches were fantastic in terms of where the game was at that point of time. I can't single out because both were spectacular.

[Reporter:] Who will get best fielders medal?

[Shubman Gill:] You'll see on the Indian cricket team page soon.

[Reporter:] Playing in your first World Cup and batting with Rohit opening and batting with Kohli – what does it mean for you and what do you look to gain from this World Cup?

[Shubman Gill:] To see them how they go about their business in World Cup and in big games is what I always try to learn from them. I think there's a fine line between sometimes being too aggressive or going in the shell, especially playing big games. But I think the way they play, the way their mindset is playing those big games in the World Cup is what I try to learn from them.

Najmul Hossain Shanto post-match press conference

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