Shubman Gill turns 27: Top 5 knocks for Indian opener in international cricket, ranked

The Indian captain of ODI and Test cricket, Shubman Gill, has turned 27 on September 08, 2026, which marks another milestone in a career that has evolved quickly from the potential of being one of the most important batters in Indian cricket. Born in Fazilka, he has established himself across the three formats and has taken a major leadership role for the national side.  

Gill’s rise has been built around the combination of remarkable consistency and the ability to perform on the demanding international stages. Beginning with his breakthrough Test series in Australia during the 2020-21 tour to the record-breaking ODI performances, the star batter has displayed some cracking knocks that have announced his arrival at the international level.

One of the most remarkable aspects of Gill’s career is the rapid pace with which he accumulated the runs in the 50-over format. By his 27th birthday, he had already scored 3379 runs in ODIs, including nine centuries, while his highest score remains his spectacular 208 against New Zealand.

Gill is the fastest player to reach both 2000 and 2500 runs in ODI cricket. His Test career has been impressive, especially the growth in his leadership. He has collected 3043 runs in Test cricket, besides scoring 11 centuries by the age of 27, with a career best of 269 against England. The skill of producing some authoritative knocks has become an important part of his identity as a red-ball batter.

From his record ODI double century to match-winning Test knocks — Gill's best innings, ranked

Numbers don’t fully capture the impact of Gill. Some of his finest knocks have arrived when he needed aggression or a player who can take control of the game. Irrespective of it being a pressure-filled chase, a dominant ODI century or a marathon Test knock, he has created his collection of knocks worthy of revisiting.

Gill celebrates his 27th birthday, which is the perfect occasion to look back at the knocks that defined his international career. Here are the top five international knocks, ranked for their match situation, impact, and significance to Indian cricket-

#5 126 vs New Zealand in Ahmedabad (2023)-

It was the third T20I of the series between India and New Zealand in 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.  Gill, while opening the batting, smashed a dashing knock of 126 runs off just 63 balls. His knock was decorated with 12 boundaries and seven sixes at a strike rate of 200 as the home side finished with a massive score of 234 runs in their allotted 20 overs for the loss of four wickets.

Gill’s first six of the evening came in the 14th over of the innings. The right-handed batter waited for the leg-cutter and nailed the pull shot over the deep mid-wicket region for a massive six against Lockie Ferguson. He continued the aggression by shuffling across the length ball and hoisting it over the deep mid-wicket region for another six.

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On the very next delivery, Gill brought his special bottom hand into the play and whipped it over deep mid-wicket for a six. Ben Tickner also found himself into the stands as the Punjab-born used the pace of Ferguson to help it over the third man region for a fine six.

In reply to India’s mammoth score, the Kiwis were bundled out for just 66 runs as the blue brigade won the contest by 168 runs. Hardik Pandya returned with figures of 4/16 in four overs while all of Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, and Shivam Mavi picked up two wickets each.

#4 147 vs England in Headingley (2025)-

With the retirement of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Cheteshwar Pujara before the England series in 2025, Gill was under massive pressure to contribute with the bat and lead the national side with the new leadership duties. The three centuries from him, Rishabh Pant, and Yashasvi Jaiswal shouldered the visitors to 471 runs. 

Gill celebrated his very first Test century in England as his 147-run knock was decorated with 19 boundaries and one six at a strike rate of 64.76. His knock was special because of the temperament and patience he showed against the home bowlers under foreign conditions.

Moreover, the right-handed batter didn’t let the pressure get to him and played the shots in all parts of the game, which showed how important he would be for the national side in future trips.

#3 91 vs Australia in Brisbane (2021)-

It was the fourth Test of the four-match series between Australia and India, which took place at the Gabba. The home side batted first and posted a massive score of 369 runs in the first innings thanks to captain Tim Paine’s fifty and the 108-run knock of Marnus Labuschagne. India somehow reached close to the first innings score of the hosts with the two fifties from their lower order.

See Also: Complete list of top five Indian batters with most runs in WTC 2025-27

The home side set a massive target of 329 runs for the Indian side in the fourth innings. Gill, towards the beginning of his career, was given the responsibility of offering his side a strong start with the bat as he walked up to open the batting with Rohit Sharma. 

The Punjab-born player nailed a fine knock of 91 runs off 146 balls at a strike rate of 62.33, thanks to eight boundaries and a pair of sixes. Pujara also cracked 56 runs in his marathon knock off 211 balls, where he tolerated the short balls and bouncers one after another against all the Australian bowlers.

Rishabh Pant played a memorable knock of unbeaten 89 runs off 138 balls at a strike rate of 64.49, thanks to nine boundaries and one six as India completed the chase of 329 runs by three wickets.

#2 208 vs New Zealand in Hyderabad (2023)-

It was the opening ODI of the 2023 series against the Blackcaps for India at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. India batted first and posted a huge score of 349 runs for the loss of eight wickets in their allotted 50 overs as Gill cracked a fine knock of 208 runs off 149 balls while opening the batting.

His knock was arranged with 19 boundaries and nine sixes at a strike rate of nearly 140. He reached his fifty in fashion with a six dispatched over the deep mid-wicket region before getting to his 150 in the same fashion when he nailed a six against Michael Bracewell. Even to make it into the double century, the right-handed batter drilled a huge six over the long-off region.

The visitors tried their best in the chase as Bracewell slammed an unbelievable knock of 140 runs off just 78 balls at a strike rate of around 180. But it wasn’t possible, as they fell short of the target by 12 runs at the end.

#1 269 vs England in Edgbaston (2025)-

It was the second Test of the five-match series between India and England in 2025 that took place at Edgbaston. The visitors were behind in the series by a 1-0 margin and needed to put in an impressive performance to square it up.

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And Gill, with the captaincy baton, stood tall to smash a fine knock of 269 runs off just 387 balls at a strike rate of nearly 70, shouldering on his 30 boundaries and three sixes. Ravindra Jadeja also cracked up 89 runs off 137 balls at a strike rate of nearly 65 as India were bundled out for 587 runs in the first innings.

He followed it up with another thrilling knock of 161 runs off 162 balls, decorated with 13 boundaries and eight sixes as India declared 427 runs for the loss of six wickets in just 83 overs. England were bundled out for just 271 runs in the fourth innings as the blue brigade earned the victory by 336 runs to level the series at 1-1.

Top 5 knocks of Shubman Gill in international cricket- FAQs