‘I am giving you 10 years. The least you can do is…’- R Sridhar opens up on the Virat Kohli-Shubman Gill Camaraderie

Former India fielding coach R Sridhar launched his book ‘Coaching Beyond’ earlier this year. Since the launch, his literature has reminded the world of some lesser-known cricketing stories, both on and off the pitch. One similar story has surfaced of India’s current batting sensations, Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill.

Much like Kohli took over the baton from India’s batting great, Sachin Tendulkar, Gill is expected to do so for Kohli. The duo’s bond isn’t a new story. Gill made his International debut under Kohli’s captaincy in an ODI against New Zealand in 2019. The two have always shared a mentor and apprentice relationship. R Sridhar takes it a notch above with an incident he wrote about in his book, ‘Coaching Beyond.’

R Sridhar narrates an incident from a fielding session back in 2021

“In March 2021, we were in Ahmedabad for the third of 4 Tests against England. It was our first citing of the Narendra Modi Stadium, which would be hosting only the 2nd Day-Night Test in India. We were not guaranteed a place in the final of the World Test Championship (WTC), so there was a lot riding on this match. Much debate had been generated by how the colour of the seats, many of which would be unoccupied due to the restrictions necessitated by the pandemic, could offer a difficult backdrop against which to cite the pink ball,” the former India fielding coach wrote in his book ‘Coaching Beyond’.

“It had just been a month from Gill’s tantalising innings of 91 at the Gabba, proving quintessential for India to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Returning home, Gill was expected to take his next big step into becoming a regular among India’s batting picks. However, the then-21-year-old could only manage 119 runs from four tests, with the highest score of 50. When he needed inspiration, he didn’t look beyond Virat Kohli.”

“Virat knew he could not control anything else beyond being ready for the unexpected. So, he tucked me aside for a fielding session in twilight under a not-so-ideal backdrop of orange chairs that dotted the stands, taking close to an unbelievable 200 catches. And that too, the night before a Test match. Shubman Gill, who was looking on from a distance, eventually got so tired of watching that he too decided to join in the fun,” added Sridhar.

“Virat smiled at him cheekily and said, ‘I am giving you 10 years in age, young man. The least you can do is take a few catches yourself.’ The session only ended when, in exasperation, the manager came out to inform him that the rest of the squad was ready and good to go and that the team bus was leaving for the hotel in 10 minutes.”