Shubman Gill left Edgbaston sounding relieved, pleased – and slightly concerned. His side had just beaten England to square the series at 1-1, yet the India captain felt the contest tipped a little too far towards the batters.
Key facts first. India won by 87 runs, finishing England off late on the fifth afternoon. Gill’s own scores of 269 and 161 framed the match, while his quicks took 15 of the 20 English wickets, most of them with the hard, new Dukes ball. The rest of the time they were made to wait.
“It gets very difficult for the bowlers,” Gill said. “Even more than the wicket [pitch], the ball is going soft and out of shape very quickly. I don’t know what it is – weather, wickets [pitches] or whatever – but it gets very difficult for the bowlers to get wickets in these conditions. As a team, when you know it is difficult to get wickets and runs are coming easily, a lot of things are out of your control.
“I think there should be a little help at least. If the ball is doing something, you enjoy playing. If you know there is only 20 overs of any help and then you have to spend the rest of the day on the defensive, thinking how to stop runs, then the game loses its essence.”
That worry is hardly new in England’s so-called Bazball era, yet it was notable coming from a visiting captain fresh from victory. Gill, smiling, admitted that as a batter he did not always mind the gentle period after the ball stopped talking, especially given the “spicy” surfaces he has met elsewhere. But the wider health of Test cricket, he feels, demands some balance.
Leading by example
The win owed much to Gill’s conversion of starts into mammoth scores, something that deserted him in the first Test when he holed out for 147. Asked what changed, the 25-year-old spoke less about technique and more about responsibility.
“Sometimes, especially when you are the captain, I think you need to lead by example so that whenever there is another player in that situation, you can command to that player,” he said. “‘This is what the team requires right now and you always have to put the team first rather than your personal desires.’ Or sometimes you want to try some things, but I think if you put the team ahead of you, you will always walk in the right direction or walk on the right path and that’s what I wanted to do in this match. If a good ball gets me out, it gets me out, but as long as I’m there, I want to play as long as possible.”
Selections and flat decks
England’s surface for this Test was so benign that Kuldeep Yadav’s wrist-spin never came into the conversation at the toss. Gill picked Washington Sundar instead, seeking lower-order runs to go with his off-spin. Privately, he must have wondered if Kuldeep’s variations might have broken England’s middle-order stand that briefly threatened on day four, yet he stuck by the call afterwards.
This is uncharted territory for modern India. At home their spinners usually wrap things up inside four days; overseas they often confront green seamers. Two matches that went to the final session felt positively old-fashioned.
“Definitely helped us in a massive way,” Gill said. “I would say not many Test matches when we play in India go for five days. But luckily most of the days when we are playing here we are betting and not fielding, so that’s good for us. Even in the first innings, I think we fielded for about 90 overs, which is about a day.”
What next?
Gill half-joked that he would be surprised if England serve up another featherbed at Trent Bridge next week, though local reports suggest a touch more grass. The bowlers on both sides would welcome it; Stuart Broad admitted England “never found that fourth-stump nip” once the lacquer wore off.
Former India seamer Zaheer Khan, part of the television panel, felt the issue went beyond pitch preparation. “If the Dukes ball is losing shape after 30 overs you can’t expect sustained movement,” he said. “Maybe the manufacturers need to look at the seam.”
Statistically, wickets have indeed become harder work. Since 2022 fast bowlers in England average just under 35, eight runs more than the preceding five-year block. Off the record, administrators worry that limitless run-fests could drain crowds over a long summer.
For now, India will take the win and the momentum. Gill reiterated his admiration for his attack, who found just enough reverse swing late on day five to prise out Joe Root and Brook in successive overs. “They kept coming,” he said, patting Jasprit Bumrah on the back during the presentation.
Yet the captain’s parting shot was unmistakable. Flat pitches and soft balls might inflate batting averages, but they also risk dulling the contest. England have four days to decide whether to tweak the formula before the series moves to Nottingham.
