Shubman Gill falls prey to nemesis Mitchell Starc for third time in ODIs

Mitchell Starc, Shubman Gill (Pic: AFP)

IND vs AUS ICC World Cup 2023 final: Mitchell Starc will continue to be Shubman Gill's nightmare as the youngster's horror run went on against the left-armer in the ICC World Cup 2023 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.

Gill has faced the left-arm pacer four times in the 50-over format and has been dismissed on three occasions. Against Starc, Gill has struggled to get past the 15-over mark, which further exemplifies the command the Australian has over the youngster.

In four innings, Gill has scored 38 runs in 45 balls and ended up getting dismissed three times. If Gill managed to hang on to his wicket, the opening pair could have set the record for the most partnership runs in a calendar year in ODIs.

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Former skippers Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly hold the record since 1998 with a tally of 1,635 runs to their name. In the current calendar year, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill have amassed 1,523 runs. The Australian pair of Adam Gilchrist and Mark Waugh in 1999 put up 1,518 runs in a single calendar year.

Australia skipper Pat Cummins won the toss and put India to bat which has proved to be a fruitful decision in the first 11 overs.

Rohit stated that India would have wanted to bat but the Men in Blue lost three wickets in the first 11 overs.

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After Gill lost his wicket, Rohit continued to bat in his usual style putting India in firm control. Virat Kohli joined the party, scoring two consecutive boundaries off Mitchell Starc.

But Rohit's heroics with the bat was brought to an end by Glenn Maxwell for a score of 47. Shreyas Iyer looked promising and opened his account with a four but skipper Pat Cummins got better of him at the end.