READ: How Rahul Dravid bettered Shubman Gill’s game with a simple advice?

INDIA U-19 made a perfect start to their ICC Under 19 World Cup 2018 campaign as they thrashed Australia and won their opening game by 100 runs. 

Courtesy of captain Prithvi Shaw's 94 and fellow opener Manjot Kalra's 86 and Shubman Gill's 63, the men in blue posted a target of 329. Pacers Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi claimed three wickets each to end the match in their favour. Following the win, Shubman Gill revealed how coach Rahul Dravid helped him improved his game.

Shubman divulged that the former India skipper advised him to keep the ball down instead of taking the aerial route while batting. After considering the legendary batsman’s suggestion, Gill went on to score 102 at Worcester and 147 at Hove. Speaking to icc-cricket.com, the 18-year-old said,

“When England came to India last February, I got out playing two rash shots in my first two ODIs. I tried to lift the ball and got out. He [Dravid] came and told me, ‘you are such a good striker of the ball, why do you want to hit the ball in the air?’ He gave me a challenge in the next two matches to not score any runs with aerial shots, and I got a hundred in the next two matches. He was like, ‘see, you can score so much on the ground, why do you need to hit it in the air?'"

The India U-19 will take on Papua New Guinea on January 16. 

Get the latest in the world of Sports, Teams, and Players! Free Delivery to your Inbox.