08 July,2025 11:43 AM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Shubman Gill. Pic/AFP; (right) Ajinkya Rahane. Pic/X
Team India veteran, Ajinkya Rahane, has heaped praise on skipper Shubman Gill for his stunning display with the willow in the second Test match against England in Birmingham.
During the match, Gill registered the scores of 269 runs in the first and 161 runs in the second innings, helping the visitors emerge victorious against England by a margin of 336 runs. The five-match Test series now stands tied at 1-1.
Hailing Shubman Gill's performances, Rahane shared a post on his official social media handle, which read, "Enjoyed watching @ShubmanGill bat and lead the team from the front. Congratulations on the historic win @BCCI."
The 25-year-old has been enjoying his rich vein of form since the start of the five-match Test series. India bounced back in style, scripting history by defeating England for the first time at Edgbaston. Gill's double century in the first innings laid a solid foundation, and his attacking ton in the second provided the perfect finishing touch.
During the match, Team India posted a total of 587 runs in the first innings, thanks to Yashasvi Jaiswal's explosive innings. Facing 107 balls, the left-hander scored 87 runs, which was laced with 13 boundaries. Fellow opening batsman KL Rahul departed early after scoring just two runs in 26 balls. Karun Nair, who has been struggling to prove his worth in the team, delivered a decent knock of 31 runs, including five boundaries.
Skipper Shubman Gill then smashed 269 runs off 387 deliveries. His knock included 30 boundaries and three maximums. Vice-captain Rishabh Pant accumulated 25 runs off 42 balls, with the help of a boundary and a maximum. Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was included to provide stability in the lower middle-order, failed to score many runs.
Coming down to bat, Ravindra Jadeja amassed 89 runs off 137 balls, including 10 boundaries and a maximum. Washington Sundar, too, scored 42 runs in 103 balls, including three boundaries and a maximum.
Shoaib Bashir (3/167) was the pick of the bowlers for England, while Chris Woakes and Josh Tongue also managed two each.
In England's first innings, India had them on the ropes with 84/5. However, a 303-run stand between Harry Brook (158 in 234 balls, with 17 fours and a six) and wicketkeeper-batter Jamie Smith (184' in 207 balls, with 21 fours and four sixes) sent India on an endless hunt for leather and answers. However, Siraj (6/70) and Akash Deep (4/88) got something out of the new ball and took down the last five wickets for 20 runs, bundling them down for 407 runs, gaining a 180-run lead.
India's response was a swift half-century partnership between Jaiswal (28 in 22 balls, with six fours) and KL Rahul, who also continued his good run with a 10-boundary-filled 55 in 84 balls. A 110-run stand for the fourth wicket between Rishabh Pant (65 in 58 balls, with eight fours and three sixes) and Gill upped the attack, while Gill managed yet another epic 175-run stand with Jadeja, scoring 161 in 162 balls, with 13 fours and eight sixes. Jadeja scored an unbeaten 69' in 118 balls, with five fours and a six. India declared at 427/6, leading by 607 runs and setting England a monstrous 608 runs to win.
During the run chase, England was restricted to 50/3. Jamie Smith (88 in 99, with nine fours and four sixes) was the only glimmer of hope for England as they were skittled out for just 271 runs, losing by 336 runs, thanks to a brilliant spell from Akash Deep (6/99), who ended up taking a ten-fer.
(With ANI Inputs)
