Shubman Gill’s 223 ‘one of the best innings’ I have seen in ODI cricket: Sitanshu Kotak

Shubman Gill smashed an unbeaten 223 against West Indies in the second ODI. | Photo Credit: RITU RAJ KONWAR

India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak highlighted Shubman Gill’s hunger to score big, calling the skipper’s unbeaten 223 against the West Indies here on Wednesday “one of the best innings” he had seen in ODI cricket.

“I feel that hunger is very important for a player. Normally, after getting to 100, you see batters get out. But when Gill was around 110-115, I felt he could probably get to 200. We always talk about the set batter finishing the game. Virat (Kohli) did it in the last match, and today Gill did it with Ruturaj (Gaikwad) alongside him. That hunger is important to play an innings like this.

“It was extremely humid. Even during the warm-up, we were out there for 45 minutes and were completely wet. We fielded for four hours, and then to bat the way Gill did was just unbelievable,” he said after the match.

Also read | Shubman Gill’s 223: When beauty met responsibility in India’s record chase vs West Indies

Asked if it was a concern that the team had not been getting enough exposure to difficult conditions ahead of next year’s World Cup, he said: “As far as preparation is concerned, we’ll be playing five games in New Zealand. I’ve also been to South Africa, and there are wickets there that can be similar to our conditions. We have to prepare for whatever conditions come our way. Our batters will be ready.

“There will be difficult wickets in one-day cricket, and different venues will offer different conditions. Hopefully, by then, we’ll be prepared. Sometimes, I wonder how in the 1983 World Cup, 183 in 60 overs was a lot, and today even 400 doesn’t seem enough. Is it only the wickets, or is the standard of batting also going up? It’s debatable.”

West Indies bowling coach Ravi Rampaul said India “played well in the PowerPlay” and put his team “on the back foot.” He added that the focus was on restoring “belief” among the bowlers.