WTC Final 2023 | “Should not create dispute over this…”: Rajeev Shukla on Shubman Gill’s dismissal

India’s captain Rohit Sharma (2R) and India’s Shubman Gill stand as they wait for the result of an umpires review during play on day 4 of the ICC World Test Championship cricket final match between Australia and India at The Oval, in London, on June 10, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AFP

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice president Rajeev Shukla has revealed his thoughts on the Cameron Green catch that saw India opener Shubman Gill dismissed at a crucial stage of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final on Day 4 against Australia.

On the fourth day of a gripping match at The Oval, Gill was declared out by TV umpire Richard Kettleborough at the stroke of tea after India got a strong start in their run chase, with 444 needed to win.

Pacer Scott Boland found the edge of India’s opener’s bat and Cameron Green dove to his left in his preferred gully position to complete the catch, but the debate has opened up in the cricket world on whether the Australia all-rounder was successful in getting his hands under the ball and controlling it.

Cameron Green of Australia takes a catch to dismiss off Shubman Gill of India the bowling of Scott Boland of Australia during day four of the ICC World Test Championship Final between Australia and India at The Oval on June 10, 2023 in London, England.
| Photo Credit:
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Green immediately started celebrating the superb catch with his teammates. Fans and many players debated whether the batter was out or not as well as whether Green avoided hitting the ball on the grass when his hand came on the ground after catching it as soon as the ‘out’ decision was shown on the huge screen.

Gill and India captain Rohit Sharma were left unconvinced by the decision.

“We should not create a dispute over this. We should accept the decision of the Third umpire,” Rajeev Shukla told ANI. The success of India will depend on the two players who are in the middle when play resumes. Rahane’s outstanding performance for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) helped him gain a spot back in the India Test XI, and his brilliant 89 in the first innings demonstrated that he is back to his entertaining best.

And with an unbeaten 44* on Saturday, Kohli went beyond a career tally of 2000 runs in Tests against Australia, becoming only the fifth Indian batter in history to do so.

“Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli are batting well and if everyone plays safe we can chase down the target as the target is not that big,” Shukla further added.

Coming to the match, an eventful day of cricket came to an end with Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane holding down India’s fort at the end of Day-4 of the ongoing World Test Championship Final 2023 between India and Australia on Saturday.

At the end of the day, India scored 164/3 in 40 overs with Ajinkya Rahane 20(59) and Virat Kohli 44(60) unbeaten at the crease.