Former Team India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar hilariously advised Shubman Gill not to give Rohit Sharma popcorn when the players were on a rain-induced break during the first ODI against Australia in Perth. While Nayar was in awe of how they were bonding, he said 'As long as woh use popcorn offer na kare. Jab tak woh akela kha raha hai I'm happy.'
Nayar's cheeky comment likely arises from Rohit returning to fitness and not wanting to lose out on it again. The former Indian captain had stunned fans with his transformation in the recent CEAT Cricket Awards in Mumbai as he looked sharp in a suit, with the weight-gaining aspect visibly noticeable. Nevertheless, Rohit will no longer be captain of the ODI team, with Shubman Gill replacing him. Speaking to the reporters on Saturday, Gill had spoke highly of his predecessor about how good a bonding they share.
Speaking on Star Sports, Nayar observed that Gill is doing everything to make Rohit feel comfortable but said in the end:
"'As long as woh use popcorn offer na kare. Jab tak woh akela kha raha hai I'm happy." (As long as woh he is not offering the popcorn to Rohit. Till the time, he is eating alone, I'm happy.
"When you lose three wickets in the powerplay, you're always trying to play catch up" - Shubman Gill
With India suffering a seven-wicket loss in Perth, Gill said losing early wickets made it quite hard for India. He said:
"Never easy. When you lose three wickets in the powerplay, you're always trying to play catch up. There were a lot of learnings and positives as well. Defending 130 in 26 odd overs, we took the game pretty deep so we're satisfied with that. We're very fortunate that wherever we play, fans turn up in huge numbers."
With the contest getting reduced to 26 overs, the Men in Blue managed only 136/9. In response, the home side chased it down with seven wickets to spare.
