England undid Shubman Gill by making 'personal attacks' in the Lord's Test?
India celebrated and revered the success of the calm and composed leadership of MS Dhoni. The same cricket-loving nation rejoiced in the emergence of a new, fiery team under the blazing and bold captaincy of Virat Kohli. The likes of Dhoni and Kohli remained consistent in their style of play and leadership, bringing in the results to justify their temperament and methods. Now, as Shubman Gill steps into the role of India's new Test captain, fans are still gauging what kind of leader the youngster is. However, what transpired in the third India vs England Test has the fraternity and fans divided. Gill charged at England aggressively. However, the No.4 batter crumbled when the hosts showcased the same hostility.
What transpired with Shubman Gill in the Lord's Test
While heartbreaking for India in the end, the Lord's Test was nothing short of a thriller. The concluding moments of Day 3 saw the new Indian captain, Shubman Gill, taking on Zak Crawley. As the opener tried to stall the game against the attack of Jasprit Bumrah, Gill called for the English opener to fight. Agitated by Crawley's attempt to sabotage his plan of bowling at least two overs in the evening, Gill made crude gestures at the batter. "Grow some fu***** ba***," Gill shot at Crawley before the entire Indian team broke into mocking slow claps at the next ball.
Day 4 saw Mohammed Siraj celebrating a wicket right in the face of Ben Duckett. While the pacer drew ICC's ire for his boisterous celebration, Shubman Gill evaded any repercussions for his actions against Crawley. With Day 3 setting the tone, the rest of the Lord's Test carried the aggressive vein. However, the tide turned when England got to India with their chirping. Harry Brook had a go at Nitish Kumar Reddy, while Jofra Archer threw a "fu** off" at Washington Sundar after dismissing the all-rounder for a duck.
Before that, however, England successfully got into the mind of Shubman Gill, sending the captain back on Day 4 itself. As Gill came out to bat, Ben Duckett was heard saying that 600 would be enough for Gill in the series. Scoring 600 runs in just three Tests is no minuscule feat. Shubman Gill reached the record-breaking figures by scoring a double ton and another century in the same fixture, the Edgbaston Test. Moreover, the start of Gill's captaincy tenure happened with a ton at Headingley. In the second India vs England Test, Gill became the first-ever Indian captain to win a Test in Birmingham.
Sanjay Manjrekar reveals how the hosts attacked Shubman Gill in the third India vs England Test
Despite all that he had achieved before arriving at Lord's, England's chirping got the better of the Indian captain. In the final chase of 193, Gill could manage only 6 before he departed. In his short stay at the crease, the skipper looked visibly uncomfortable. For a batter who had scored 600 in the series, it was definitely not a case of 'bad form' toying with Gill. Clearly, the digs by the hosts took a toll on Gill's mindset. Now, former Indian player Sanjay Manjrekar has drawn a comparison between Gill and Kohli, highlighting how the same chirping that perturbed Gill motivated Kohli to charge more aggressively at the opposition with the bat.
"The thing with Virat Kohli was that he would get even more fired up and become a better batter [if things got nasty]. What disappointed me with Shubman Gill, and that is why I was wondering, where is Shubman Gill heading? Because that seemed like it didn't have the right effect on Shubman Gill, the batter," Manjrekar said.
While on broadcasting duty, Sanjay Manjrekar pointed to the stump mic exchanges as evidence that Shubman Gill was on the receiving end of 'personal attacks' when he walked out to bat in India’s second innings at Lord’s. According to Manjrekar, the Indian captain appeared unsettled and hesitant during his brief stint at the crease, suggesting he didn’t cope well with the provocation.
"He came out looking very tentative and, you know, these days we are privy to the stump mic, and we could hear the things being said, and there were some personal attacks made. This could be a new experience for Shubman Gill because these days, as you can see, you know, with Indian players, there's mostly a friendly reception from a lot of foreign teams. So this was new territory. And he looked tentative and wasn't up for it," he added.
In his argument, furthermore, Manjrekar highlighted Gill's turn-up in the Headingley and the Edgbaston Tests. The former cricketer accepted that while conditions at Lord's were hard to deal with, they were nothing beyond Gill's capabilities. Manjrekar highlighted that Gill even took a review with himself as Brydon Carse trapped him LBW in the final chase. It remains to be seen whether Gill can handle such hostility better in the upcoming matches of his tenure as India's captain.
"We saw it pan out in the way he batted. Because these were deliveries, good deliveries, but he's negotiated beautifully through his marathon run as a batter through the series. And suddenly he was missing those balls. There was a review situation as well. Next ball, there was a leg-before. Going through Shubman Gill's defence has been hard work. He has hardly missed a ball. The control percentage has been brilliant. And suddenly, in about nine deliveries [in the second innings], he's missed four. I have no doubt that there is a connection there," Manjrekar said.
