Shubman Gill Did Nothing Wrong, England Deliberately Wasted Time: Parthiv Patel

News18

2 days ago

Parthiv Patel has backed Shubman Gill for his fierce reaction to England's time-wasting tactics during Day 3 of the Lord's Test.
After India were bowled out for 387, an identical scoreline to England's first innings total of 387 towards the end of Day 3 of the 3rd Test at Lord's, Shubman Gill and Co. were hoping to squeeze in a couple of overs in their attempt to land an early blow given the tricky phase. As it turned out, India were only able to bowl one over of Jasprit Bumrah thanks to the tactics deployed by English openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett that ate up the last few remaining minutes.
It was clear that England were trying to waste time so as to not face another over. Crawley copped a blow on his hand and immediately called for the physio, drawing sarcastic applause from Indian players.
A frustrated Gill engaged in a heated conversation with Crawley before firing a verbal volley, advising the England opener to 'grow some f***** b***s."
Gill later explained his anger wasn't towards what England did on the field but the fact that they took 90 seconds to arrive in the middle and begin their innings. He said it wasn't in the spirit of the game.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel has backed Gill for his reaction while accusing England and other teams of using the term 'spirit of the game' conveniently when it suits them.
'No, it's not (surprising)," Parthiv responded to a News18 CricketNext query on being surprised at Gill's aggression on Day 3. 'We've seen him doing this during IPL too. It's just that. This sport is about expressing your emotions as long as you are not crossing the line. And I don't think Shubman will cross the line at all."
'It was clear how slowly the English batters were walking in. And I feel that whether it is England, Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa, they use this word 'spirit of the game' very, very conveniently whenever they feel they want to use it," he added.
Patel said there was a deliberate attempt from England to waste time.
'There was nothing wrong in Shubman Gill asking in a press conference – asking English media or the public – whether it's ok to come to bat 90 seconds late – that's almost one over of Ravindra Jadeja. So that was a deliberate attempt, and on the field too. I don't think Shubham did anything wrong," Patel, who is associated with Gujarat Titans as assistant coach, said during the interaction facilitated by JioHotstar.
Having observed Gill from close quarters at GT, a franchise that the star batter leads in the IPL, Patel feels the young captain is showing improvement and will only get better.
India lost the series opener of their ongoing tour of England, a contest in which Gill made his Test captaincy debut. They bounced back with a record win in Birmingham before a close defeat at Lord's.
'As far as his (Gill's) captaincy is concerned, obviously, this is new to him. He's done (well), he's improving, there is no doubt about it. And at Gujarat Titans, whatever I've observed about him, he's been very assertive. He knows what he wants; he's very clear with his plans and ideas. So I'm sure with time, you will see very much improvement in his captaincy too," Patel said.
Catch the 4th Test of India's tour of England from July 23-27 at 3:30 PM, live on JioHotstar
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