Gill says India looking to dominate the ODI series

Before the Champions Trophy begins on February 19, India will play three ODIs against England which is considered as the last bit of preparation the Indian team gets. However the Indian vice-captain Shubman

Gill said that they are not looking at this series as a practice for the Champions Trophy but are looking to dominate and win this series like any other.

Gill who has played 47 ODIs was addressing media persons ahead of first ODI to be played at VCA Jamtha Stadium on Thursday.

Gill said, “ We are playing against a good side and we are not taking this as a practice for Champions Trophy as it is a very important series for us and we are looking to dominate and win this series like any other serie”.

Indian team was widely criticised for losing recent Border-Gavaskar Test series 1-3 against Australia . The performance of key batter was criticised after the debacle.However Gill defended the team's performance saying that one poor series does not define a team and that it is unfair to criticise a side after a rare bad outing. "One series does not define the form of the whole team. There are a lot of players who, in the past, have performed consistently in a lot of series and tournaments. Definitely, we did not play as per our expectations in the Australian series, but still we played some good cricket. We were unfortunate not to have (Jasprit) Bumrah on the last day and we would have won the match and the series would have been a draw and this talk wouldn't have happened.”

All the eyes will be on the experienced players like Rohit and Kohli who struggled with bat in recent times. Gill said, “ "The way Rohit bhai has been batting in the ODIs in the past one year and a half, it's been really game-changing for us. Taking the momentum right through from the start and taking the game away form ball one and it makes the job of the non-striker and the batsmen coming in a bit easier and I think it has helped our team a lot."

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'Karun had great Hazare

trophy but unfortunate'

Although Vidarbha batter Karun Nair produced a fabulous performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, averaging 389.50 in the tournament, he was overlooked for the Champions Trophy.

Asked why the performances in the domestic cricket is overlooked Gill stressed the importance of continuity to ensure a secure team environment rather than making frequent changes based on domestic performances.

He said, "Karun had a great Vijay Hazare Trophy, but that doesn't mean the current players should be dropped. They have also performed well to reach this stage.

"We have lost only one game in the World Cups. The players in the squad have contributed significantly, and while it's unfortunate for those excelling in domestic cricket who weren't picked, constant chopping and changing will affect players' confidence. Without continuity, we can never build a strong team."