Andre Russell Reveals What He Told Shubman Gill During His 13-Ball 48 Against RCB In IPL 2019

Andre Russell was at the height of his powers in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League. The swashbuckling all-rounder from the Caribbean islands smoked went on to smoke 510 runs in 14 games at an average of 56.66 and a barely believable strike-rate of 204.81.

Russell played a plethora of memorable innings throughout the tournament but none can match his exploits against Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Batting first, RCB had smashed 3-205 in their quota of 20 overs and when Russell came to the crease [ in the 14th over with the score reading 4-139], the Knight Riders still needed another 67 runs in the remaining 26 deliveries.

But little did anyone knew that Russell had come with a mission in his mind. And, the mission was ‘to take them (RCB) down’, the swashbuckling all-rounder recently revealed.

“DK (Dinesh Karthik) looked at me and said ‘Big man, what are you thinking?’ and I told DK, ‘all I’m thinking about is boundaries’ So DK gets one boundary or two and then he gets out,” said Russell as quoted by Times of India.

He added “He hit the ball, and he got caught (by Yuzvendra Chahal at midwicket). (RCB captain) Virat Kohli turned towards the stands where all the wives and KKR supporters were sitting, and he shouted something like ‘Come on!'”

Also Read: Batting With Andre Russell Makes You Feel You’re Watching Highlights On TV: Shubman Gill

Andre Russell opens up on his thought-process during his 13-ball 48 against RCB

After DK got out, Andre Russell was joined by Shubman Gill and the all-rounder recalled saying to the young Indian batsman to give him as much strike as possible.

“When Shubman Gill walked out (at No.7), I said ‘hey listen, I’m gonna take down anybody that bowls. Anyone that comes on, I’m going to take them down tonight, so just try and give me as much strike as possible.’ He said, ‘anything you say a big man’,” said Russell.

He added: “Every time I hit a six, I wasn’t even looking at the scoreboard, because sometimes you can get carried away with the crowd and everything. After I hit the ball, I would walk up to Shubman, we do a glove-punch, and I would go back to my crease and take as deep a breath as possible. That allows me to be calm.

“I don’t look at the field, I react to whatever ball is bowled, and I hit. If I find the gap, great. It’s a happy day. But most of the time, I’m looking to go over the fielders’ heads. Once the bowler bowls the ball, good or bad, I hit it high. That’s my mindset right throughout.” Andre Russell recalled.

The right-hander went on to smash a barely believable 48 off 13 balls- an innings which included just one four but six monstrous sixes- to seal a five-wicket win for the Knight Riders.

Also Read: KKR Would Have Won More Titles Had Andre Russell Played Longer Under Me: Gautam Gambhir