BIRMINGHAM, July 6 (TNF): Indian captain Shubman Gill made history on Saturday by becoming the first batter to score both 250 and 150 in a single Test. His record-breaking effort left England chasing a colossal 608 to win at Edgbaston.
Gill followed his first-innings 269 with a stunning 161 off 162 balls. His match tally of 430 runs is second only to Graham Gooch’s 456 against India in 1990. Gill also beat Sunil Gavaskar’s 344 for the most runs by an Indian in a Test.
India declared at 427-6 after tea on day four. England ended the day at 72-3, still needing 536 on the final day to win. No team has ever chased more than West Indies’ 418 against Australia in 2003. England’s highest successful chase is 378, also against India at Edgbaston in 2022.
Gill’s knock saw strong support from Rishabh Pant, who punished England for dropping him twice. Pant hit a rapid 65 in a 110-run stand with Gill off just 103 balls.
Gill, promoted to captain after Rohit Sharma’s shock Test retirement in May, has now scored three centuries in four innings as skipper. His aggressive strokes lit up the day, smashing Josh Tongue for three consecutive boundaries — a hooked six, a swiped four over mid-on, and a fierce pull past Ben Stokes.
Pant’s innings ended when he skied Shoaib Bashir to Ben Duckett at deep mid-off. Pant’s 58-ball knock included eight fours and three sixes.
After tea, Gill hammered Chris Woakes for a six and two fours, then slog-swept Joe Root for six to reach 150. Ollie Pope missed a catch in the deep, failing to spot the ball with his sunglasses on his cap. Gill’s brilliant innings ended when he offered Bashir a simple return catch. He struck 13 fours and eight sixes.
Siraj struck early in England’s reply, removing Zak Crawley for a duck. Akash Deep bowled Ben Duckett for 25 and then Joe Root for six with a superb delivery.
At stumps, Harry Brook was unbeaten on 15. India’s bowlers will look to finish the job on Sunday as they seek to level the five-match series at 1-1.
English