Gill and Rahul’s Partnership Keeps India’s Hopes Alive Amidst England’s Dominance
Shubman Gill and KL Rahul delivered a crucial, unbroken batting display in the second session, offering a lifeline to India who are battling to stay in contention against England. While their steadfast stand provided a much-needed period without losing wickets, it was a rare moment of relief on a challenging day dominated by England’s formidable performance.
Tea: India 258 & 86 for 2 (Gill 52, Rahul 30) trails England 669 by 225 runs.**
The day began with a monumental effort from England’s captain, Ben Stokes, whose century propelled his team to a commanding total of 669, giving them a massive lead of 311. This substantial lead was quickly followed by dramatic early breakthroughs from Chris Woakes, who claimed two wickets in the very first over of India’s second innings, immediately putting the visitors under immense pressure.
At the tea break, India still faced a daunting deficit of 225 runs. Gill, who registered his fourth half-century of the series, benefited from a dropped catch at gully when he was on 46. This reprieve allowed him to continue his impressive run of form, surpassing Virat Kohli’s 655 runs against England in 2016. He is now in pursuit of Sunil Gavaskar’s record for the most runs by an Indian captain in a Test series (732).
Remarkably, Stokes chose not to bowl a single over out of the 29 bowled so far in India’s innings, perhaps due to his significant workload in this series, playing back-to-back Tests. His exceptional all-round performance, including a five-wicket haul in the first innings and a superb 141-run century, places him among an elite group of cricketers. Prior to this match, only Garry Sobers and Jacques Kallis had achieved the rare feat of 7000 runs and 200 wickets in Test cricket.
England’s first innings reached extraordinary heights, with their total of 669 being their fifth-highest ever in Test matches. Their bowlers then had about 15 minutes before lunch to target India’s openers. Woakes initiated the damage with a brilliant delivery to dismiss Yashasvi Jaiswal for a duck, seaming away to find the leading edge. Sai Sudharsan, likely fatigued after 157 overs in the field, then misjudged a short and wide delivery, ultimately getting caught at second slip while attempting to leave the ball.
