Tea: India 564-7 (Gill 265, Jadeja 89) v England
Shubman Gill walked in at No.4 on the first evening and, by the second-day tea interval, had strolled off with India’s highest Test score by a captain, unbeaten on 265. England managed just one wicket in each of the last two sessions, and the home attack looked increasingly weary under a warm Birmingham sky.
The only breakthrough after lunch came from Joe Root, who slipped in an off-break that turned past Washington Sundar’s outside edge and clipped off stump. Root’s celebration was pointed—arms aloft, yell to the Hollies Stand—though Ben Stokes had used him sparingly, even turning to Harry Brook’s medium-pace in search of inspiration.
India’s decision to bolster the middle and lower order, criticised after Headingley, is working a treat. Partnerships of 203 for the sixth wicket (Gill-Jadeja) and 144 for the seventh (Gill-Washington) have taken the tourists beyond 500 with no sign of a declaration. At 564-7, they are within sight of the highest total conceded by England in the Stokes–McCullum era: Pakistan’s 579 in Rawalpindi, 2022.
Gill’s innings has been one of patience and precision. Shoaib Bashir, still wicketless after 21 overs on day two, was milked for singles; the quicks were punctured through the gaps. Gill timed late, threading drives through cover and flicking anything on the pads. On 222 he passed Virat Kohli’s record for an Indian in England, on 255 he overtook Kohli again—this time the 254 that stood as the highest score by an Indian captain.
Washington rode a short-ball plan from Josh Tongue before lunch, then answered with a hook into the crowd at long leg, but otherwise played second fiddle, allowing Gill to collect landmarks. Ravindra Jadeja’s earlier 89 set the platform; his dismissal to a loose drive off Chris Woakes was the only blemish in a dominant morning.
With two sessions left in the day and India seven down, the visitors can afford another burst after tea. England, meanwhile, must steel themselves: the three previous occasions they have conceded 550 or more under Stokes all ended in improbable victories, yet chasing leather for a further hour or two may test that resilience to the limit.
