Citing the example of India’s ODI vice-captain Shubman Gill playing for his side, Punjab head coach Wasim Jaffer said the presence of senior stars in domestic circuit will be a “motivating” factor for young cricketers. Gill will turn out for Punjab against Karnataka in a Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match in Bengaluru from Thursday, and similarly other top stars such as Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja are appearing in this round of the tournament.
“If you want to be an international cricketer, and you want to be successful, that is something youngsters need to learn from these guys (senior stars) as how they go about their game. It is quite motivating,” Jaffer told reporters here.
“In our case, if any youngster is coming into the side, he will see him (Gill) from close quarters. How he goes about his business, how he prepares, how he plays.
“When he is in the hotel, how does he prepare himself. It is quite a learning thing. I am sure a lot of young guys in our side will be doing that,” he added.
While Punjab will have the services of Gill, they will not have left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh and opener Abhishek Sharma as the duo is a part of India’s T20I squad against England.
“We have gone through that throughout the season. Even in the Ranji Trophy, we lost Prabh Simran Singh, Nehal Vadhera, Ashdeep and Abhishek as they were away on a Emerging tour. In fact, Abhishek hasn’t played even a single Ranji Trophy this season.
“We are happy that they are playing for India. But as and when they are available, they always come and play, which is a good thing. And it (their absence) gives opportunity to the younger guys to come and show their mettle,” he added.
Punjab are currently fifth in the group and they are facing Karnataka in a must-win match, and Jaffer said it’s opportunity for the team to show their presence of mind under a pressure situation.
“Obviously, irrespective of where we are in the table, we are playing against a strong team, Karnataka. The pitch here looks like a wicket which is going to give you a result. It doesn’t look like a flat wicket.
“You want to play on a sporting pitch. But you need to look to win. We are going with that approach. We have got a very young side as well, but the good thing is that Shubhman is available. So, it is a good opportunity to showcase their skill against a good team,” he noted.
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