Latest news with #Shubman
New Indian Express
4 days ago
- Sport
- New Indian Express
Going into Oval Test, we will be high on confidence: India head coach Gambhir
Gambhir did not give any clarity on Bumrah's availability for the last Test starting at the Oval on July 31. He said no decision has been made in this regard yet. Speaking on Shubman Gill and his growth as a batter during the ongoing series, he said, "First of all, no one has any doubt on Shubman's talent. Those who had a doubt, they only know how to talk about cricket, not understand it. Because some people take time to blossom in international cricket. And there is no surprise in this dressing room that Shubman has done on this tour. And honestly, even if he hadn't done it, no one had a doubt on his talent. Because those who understand cricket, they know what kind of talent Shubman possess. And the important thing is that he is living up to his expectations, his own talent, and more importantly, the pressure of the captaincy, the burden and pressure of the captaincy. I think you can't see anything of that sort when he goes in bat. Because when he goes into bat, he goes as a batter, not as a captain." Gambhir reiterated that he believes in the team is 1-2 down in the series and will try to make it 2-2 in the last match. He also confirmed that injured wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the series due to the right broken foot adding further that all pacers are fit to play. "Rishabh, already it's been declared that he's out of the series. And one thing I want to say is that the character and the foundation of this team will be built on something Rishabh did for the team and for the country as well. Any amount of praise is not enough for him. Especially batting with a broken foot. Not many people have done that in the past. And he has put his hand up. And that is why I say, any amount of praise, I can sit here and talk about this for hours and hours. I think the generations to come will talk about this. And it should talk about it that there is someone who has batted with a broken foot. It's unfortunate because of the kind of form he was in. But again, he's an important member of the Test side and I hope he recovers quickly and comes back quickly and tries and delivers again for us. Also all the fast bowlers are fit. There is no injury scare." He said the draw here in Manchester will give the team a psychological edge over their opponents going into the last match of the series. "It will give an edge because when you see, when you're put under the pressure, when you're put under the pump and you end up playing five sessions, I think that's a great character. And anything that you do in these conditions, when you're put under pressure and you come out of those pressure moments, it is always a great feeling. And it just ends up giving a lot of confidence in the dressing room as well. And I'm sure, I think going into the Oval, I think we will be high on confidence. But we can't take anything for granted. I think it's going to be a new game. It's going to be against a strong England side and we absolutely will be up for it.
Indian Express
5 days ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
Mission (im) possible: KL Rahul, Shubman Gill battle hard to give India a chance to save fourth Test
A few days back, Indian captain Shubman Gill was asked about the one thing about the new job that surprised him. He would smile and say that he doesn't get tired much as he mostly fields around the pitch but he does get mentally drained at the end of the day. So, after leading his deflated side for 157.1 overs, handling a bowling unit not sticking to plans and battling thoughts of a hard-fought series slipping, Shubman would have been mentally knackered at the end of the England innings. And just as he would have put his leg up in the dressing room, he had to rush back on to the field. The score was 0/2, Chris Woakes was on a hat-trick, opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and No.3 Sai Sudharsan were back in the hut. After the worst couple of days of his captaincy, Gill was facing the toughest as skipper. It helped he had with him the calmest mind who was playing the tightest cricket on the tour, KL Rahul. In a partnership of epic proportions, Shubman and Rahul compiled an unbeaten 174, also India's total at stumps to revive a Test that looked lost and a series that seemed over. 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝟒: 𝐃𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐃𝐮𝐨 🤜🤛#KLRahul (87* off 210) and #ShubmanGill (78* off 167) stood strong on Day 4, digging India out of early trouble with a composed and crucial partnership under pressure 🔥 Catch the HIGHLIGHTS of Day 4 ➡ 👉… — Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) July 26, 2025 Trailing by 311 runs and 0/2, the Test seemed irredeemable. Most teams would have given up, most captains would have thrown in the towel but not this one. After playing for two full sessions, facing 317 balls, Shubman (87) and Rahul (78) had given hope when all seemed lost. This is shaping into a partnership that can be compared to the Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman partnership of 2001. In case India can stick around for one more day, this could go down as a Test recovery for ages. There are just two possible results – 'the more likely' England win and after the solid Rahul-Shubman show, the 'not quite impossible' India draw. India has ensured this remains an unputdownable series. Rains are expected on the final day of the Test but so will be an overcast sky. There have been no easy days on this tour and they come with the promise of exciting cricket. Rahul with his methodical play and Test match technique could be expected to play controlled cricket but Shubman's inning came as a refreshing surprise for its sheer tenacity – a rare virtue in Indian cricket. After spending every ounce of his energy trying to figure out ways to get the English batsmen out for the team, Shubman now with a bat in hand had to fight an individual battle. In the last three innings – twice at Lord's and in the first innings here – he has gotten out trying to dead-bat or leave the balls coming into him. At Lord's he was caught behind while negotiating the ball in the corridor by Chris Woakes, and in the next inning he was hit on the knee roll by Brydon Carse and was out lbw. Here Stokes had bowled the same line and length, Shubman had shouldered arms to a ball that DRS showed was hitting his stumps. This has been an old Shubman problem and England has been repeatedly exploiting it. Woakes and Jofra Archer both would test the Indian captain with good length balls on the off-stump with a few surprise yorkers thrown in for variety. Shubman would be tentative initially – not sure to take the stride forward to meet the ball or leave it. This must have been the most harrowing time for the Indian dressing room. A ball a millimeter close or the bat a shade closer would result in an edge flying behind the stumps. That was how close India was from losing a series. KL 🤝 GILL A batting masterclass from @klrahul & @ShubmanGill bails #TeamIndia out of early trouble! 💪 The highest 3rd-wicket partnership of the series! 🙌🏻#ENGvIND 👉 4th TEST, DAY 4 | LIVE NOW on JioHotstar 👉 — Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) July 26, 2025 From both the ends, England would attack Shubman with a barrage of nipbackers. Woakes with the talent of moving the ball in the air and Jofra Archer with the ability to make the ball come in sharply seemed close to wickets and were difficult to deal with. An early end to the game, an innings defeat to India on Day 4 was the most predicted outcome of this Test. In Jofra's second over, there were a couple of big appeals. First a Jofra late swinger would hit Gill on his boot, once again not sure about the stride forward. The skipper would survive as even technology was inconclusive. In the same over there was another appeal, once again Shubman was beaten on the front foot, since the ball was moving in too sharply they would avoid taking the DRS. It was in this crunch situation, while handling a personal and team crisis, that Shubman found a way to reset his batting technique, got hold of some spanner to tighten a few screws and grease some joints. Almost miraculously, he looked like a different batsman. There was the smooth transfer of weight and there was surety in his stride. This was a man refusing to give in, and a batsman who when troubled, not panicking but delving deep in the recesses of the mind to find a way to survive. He also was playing much straighter now. There were a couple of straight drives – one off Woakes and the other off Brydon Carse – that went racing to the sight screen from both sides of the stumps. On the second one, the graceful stroke-maker held his pose. This was a signal that he had dealt with that tough period of play. When on 48, luck too smiled on the brave captain. In a minor glitch in concentration, the India No.4 would try to over-reach for a Carse ball in the channel. He would edge to Liam Dawson at point, the ball would hit his hand but he couldn't catch it. 'Every batsman, at some stage of their life, changes the way they bat in Test cricket. Subman seems to be doing that brilliantly in England,' India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said. While Shubman was dealing with his demons, Rahul was a picture of composure. He was playing close to the body, meeting the ball late and moving away from the short balls. After the outside the off-stump bowling didn't give results, Stokes moved his troops on the other side of the field. For most of the final session, England bowled short balls on the body and placed four fielders square and behind the wicket. Rahul negated the ploy solidly. He wouldn't go for the pull but would bring the ball down. Now it was Stokes' turn to get frustrated. Before the Ashes, Rahul and Shubman gave a masterclass to the team that always plays for results, on the art and skill to play out a riveting draw.
Indian Express
23-07-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Day 1, Old Trafford: How Rishabh Pant's toe injury gave England a leg in the door
As Rishabh Pant sat on the golf-cart turned ambulance with a swollen right foot, a question loomed over Old Trafford, along with the dark clouds. How will India tread through the final hour of play on Day 1? The score at that point was 213/3, the honours were even. But with the most consistent Indian batsman on the tour gone, England captain Ben Stokes saw this as an opportunity to get his leg in the door. He did very soon. Six overs later the last of India's specialist, Sai Sudharsan pulled a short ball from Stokes into the hands of fine-leg. The cat and mouse contest for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy continues. India had a foot ahead till Pant was hit flush on his right toe by England's hero of the day Chris Woakes. At stumps, India would finish at 264/4. On crease were the two all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur. Both were on 19, both looking comfortable against the tired England attack. This was a hard day's work for both the batsmen and bowlers. Once again the most-repeated 'end of the day' summation on this series—the first hour tomorrow would be crucial—echoed around the storied ground. This game too has the opening of a gripping drama. The pitch is no sleeping beauty, this is no batting paradise, the spinners are getting turn, pacers the bounce. The 'Theatre of Dreams', the home of footballers that has the same name, is round the corner. But cricket's Old Trafford too might throw up a game of gravitas. On the very first day, a fairytale almost unfolded. Sudharsan getting into the playing XI here wasn't a popular decision. Experts have believed that he shouldn't have replaced Karun Nair, who should have been given one more game. But those in the know say that it was captain Shubman Gill who backed Sudharsan. No one has seen India's new No.3 as closely as Shubman. They are opening partners at Gujarat Titans. The two have spent long hours on the field and months together during the IPL. Familiarity doesn't always breed contempt, it also can generate awe. Once during the IPL, Shubman had spoken about Sudharsan's special talent. 'It's easy to swing freely on good cement wickets, but real skill lies in reading conditions, assessing the situation.' The coaches at GT also talk about the potential of the star batsman who plays even IPL like Tests. Assistant coach Nadeem Amin, talking to this paper about Shubman, had diverted the topic towards the other GT opener. That was during the Lord's Test. 'He may be out now but look out for the boy, his appetite for runs is as much as Shubman. Just wait till he gets a game.' So when he got the game, the initiation was relatively easy. Openers KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal had put on 94 runs and the English pace bowlers had lost the first hour to India. Sudharsan too looked like he was going to make this opportunity count. In the first innings of the only Test he had played in England at Headingley, Sudharsan got out edging an angled ball on the leg-stump to the wicket-keeper. Stokes doesn't usually forget such weak spots in his rivals. So he immediately went round-the-wicket to the left-hander and bowl from the corner of the crease. The ploy almost worked, Sudharsan edged a ball but the wicket-keeper Jamie Smith failed to grab it. This was the lucky break the batsman returning to the team wanted. A big part of Sudharsan's batting is his wrists. There is a tiny bit of Virat Kohli in his drives. He rolls his wrists over the ball, like a competent table-tennis player hitting a top-spinner. He is also quick to jump on balls that are marginally short as he crouches and slaps them to square leg. This too isn't a straight tight slap but more of a subtle pat, again with the help of his wrists. Sudharsan's county stint also prepared him to negotiate the English conditions, the kind India encountered for the first time on this tour. In the few games he played for Surrey, the left-hander learned to relax and give importance to the technical aspects of the game. 'As a batsman, when you are juggling between formats, I believe only the mindset should change, not your game … There is a big shift tactically. When I go to England, I have to leave a lot more balls than I usually do,' he had told The Indian Express. It is the wrists that manipulate the ball into the gaps, making it difficult for the captain to set a field. When he was in the company of Pant, another batsman with a knack of hitting the ball in unguarded areas, it seemed England were in trouble. The two were toying with the bowlers, India seemed set for a long partnership. England were losing the grip and then came the twist. Pant got carried away and to a smartly bowled slow yorker, he attempted a predetermined reverse sweep. He was beaten by the pace and trajectory. He missed the ball and it hit him on the toe. There were worried faces in the Indian dressing room as the pain on Pant's face hinted at the seriousness of the injury. By late evening the word from the Indian camp was that Pant had gone for scans and the BCCI medical team was 'monitoring his progress'. India's key player's left finger hadn't yet fully healed and now he gets a blow on his right foot. A bigger question looms: How will India limp on the last leg of this tough tour if Pant is ruled out of the series?
Indian Express
22-07-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
IND vs ENG: Ricky Ponting says Shubman Gill's flare ups during Lord's Test ‘out of character' but feels it was ‘a captain standing up for team'
Former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting said that even if Shubman Gill's aggressive on-field confrontations were a little out of character, it was a 'captain standing up for his team'. A lot has been said about the flare ups during the Lord's Test with Gill's bust up with England opener Zak Crawley at the end of Day 3's play grabbing most of the headlines. 'That was a little out of character from what I've known from Shubman in the past. I am sure everyone that was there watching it and I know you would know him quite well, that's not what he's generally like,' Ponting told 'The ICC Review'. 'That's the captain standing up for his team, that's a captain really wanting to show that it's his team now and this is the way that we're going to play the game, and also, I guess, wanting to give a little bit back,' he added. Ponting also felt that Gill acted in a manner similar to former captain Virat Kohli. 'I think that's him starting to put his stamp on his team. And a lot like Virat (Kohli) did, similar ways like that. Rohit (Sharma) probably was never as outwardly aggressive, I guess, especially to opposition players. I know he (Rohit) would quite often get aggressive with his teammates and try to bring the best out of them that way. But I love watching Shubman stand up for what he thought was right in the game last week,' he said. On Tuesday, Gill cleared the air on what went down at Lord's on Day 3, saying that the England batters were 90 seconds late in coming to the crease which he felt was going against the spirit of the game. 'Yes, a lot of people have been talking about it, so let me just clear the air, for once and for all, the English batsmen on that day, they had seven minutes of play left, they were 90 seconds late to come to the crease, not 10, not 20, 90 seconds late,' said Gill ahead of the 4th Test in Manchester. 'Yes, most of the teams they use this (delaying tactic), even if we were in a position, we would have also liked to play lesser overs, but there is a manner to do it, and we felt, yes if you get hit on your body, the physios are allowed to come on, and that is something that is fair. But to be able to come 90 seconds late on the crease, is not something that I would think, comes in the way of spirit of the game,' he added.
India Today
19-07-2025
- Sport
- India Today
Shubman Gill's Team India will be a world beater, don't judge them too early
Fans and experts should not be too quick to judge the Indian Test team, said Harbhajan Singh on Saturday, July 19. Speaking to India Today in an exclusive interview, Harbhajan said that Shubman Gill's India is a young team and needs time to get on the right side of the have lost two of the first three matches of the series. Ahead of their 4th Test match in Manchester, which starts on July 23, Harbhajan Singh offered support for the Indian team and its captain, stating that the lessons learnt in this series will help the young Test team become a world-beater in the do not define how good the team has been. I have said before this tour as well, do not judge this team too early or too often. This is a young team that can turn into a world-beater. The match that they won in Birmingham - that was incredible. India could have won at Lord's as well; they were quite close. And this team will learn a lot from this series. And the lessons they will take from this series, they will use to their favour in the future. We should not judge them too quickly," Harbhajan Singh said in an exclusive interview. Let Shubman Figure Out His Own Brand: Harbhajan Speaking about the captain himself, Harbhajan said that Gill had the mettle to become a pillar of Indian cricket for many years to come. The former off-spinner added that Shubman oozes class and will slowly learn the older tricks of the trade as well, which will help in leading the Indian team."Shubman Gill is a big player, and he will be the pillar of the Indian team for many years to come. How many Indian batters have come and stamped their authority in England? He definitely has the capability, and I never doubted his credentials for a moment in international cricket. His basics are so good. His father has worked so much on him. He has made Shubman repeat his drills at least a thousand times. And you can see that when he plays the ball," Harbhajan captaincy has been criticised, especially for his antics in the Lord's Test match, where he verbally confronted Zak Crawley late on Day 3. Harbhajan said that fans should not see Shubman through the lens of former Indian said that Shubman needed time to figure out his own leadership style, which would help him become the best version of himself."Everyone's methods are different. Their natures are different, their personalities are different. Shubman Gill cannot be Ganguly or Virat or Dhoni. They are all different. He needs to be the best version of himself, and he has that ability. And he will learn. I am telling you, Shubman will not only lead India well - he will take Indian cricket right to the top of the world," the spinner concluded.- EndsTune InMust Watch
