Ahmedabad, Oct 1 (IANS) India’s Test captain Shubman Gill, who just concluded his Asia Cup campaign and is set to lead the team in the two-match Test series against West Indies starting Thursday, said that switching from one format to the other is more mental than technical.

Addressing the media on Wednesday at the press conference ahead of the first Test in Ahmedabad, Gill spoke about how he prepared for the games, given the quick turnaround between white-ball and red-ball cricket.

“We had a couple of days of practice before the Test match, so it was a quick turnaround. I was just looking to work on defence and get in the zone; switching formats is more mental than technique.

“We are looking to play some hard, grinding cricket. Over the past few years, if you see the Test matches, they haven’t got to five days. So what we are looking to do is play some good, hard cricket. All the Test matches that we played in England went pretty deep. And I think what you can expect from us is good, hard, grinding cricket, and we won’t be looking for any easy options,” Gill said.

“And I think we have the skills to dominate in any kind of situation, and the kind of talent we have got in the team, we can turn around from any situation, so that’s what we will be looking to play,” he added.

Asked about the team’s combination for the opening Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Gill said that they are tempted to have a third seamer in the XI. However, a final decision will only be made on the day of the match, based on the moisture level of the wicket.

“Given the weather and conditions, we’ll be tempted to have a third seaming option, but I think there’s still time for the Test, and once we check the field tomorrow and see how much moisture is there on the wicket, we’ll take a call.

“We would be looking to play on wickets that offer [something] to both the batsmen and to the bowlers. However, having said that, any team that comes to India faces the challenge of spin and reverse swing. These are the two things that, if teams can play spin well and if they can challenge the reverse swing, they are going to get good success. So keeping these challenges in mind, you’d be looking to play on wickets that offer [something] to the batsmen and the bowlers,” he further stated.

— IANS

vi/bsk/