Questions are being raised on Shubman Gill’s captaincy in the ongoing Test match between India and England. England batsmen Harry Brook and Jamie Smith made a tremendous comeback on the third day and washed away India’s bowling.
Mohammed Siraj initially dismissed Joe Root (22) and Ben Stokes (0) on consecutive balls to bring England to 83/5. India had a lead of 510 runs, but what happened then? Brook and Smith together took England past 300.
IND vs ENG 2nd Test: Mistake in captaincy?
Former cricketers blamed Shubman Gill for this situation. Former India fast bowler Varun Aaron said that after taking Stokes’ wicket, the Indian bowlers lost their rhythm. They started throwing bouncers, which was not the right strategy on this pitch.
Aaron said on Jio Hotstar, “India gave the English batsmen a chance. Instead of bowling at the right length, they became more aggressive. When you don’t have a bowler who can bowl at 145 km/h, it is not wise to throw so many bouncers.”
He further said, “Indian bowlers should have stuck to the stumps. Wickets are taken by maintaining constant pressure. You cannot expect immediate results every time.”
Smith scored the fastest century by an England wicketkeeper in 80 balls, while Brook scored his 9th Test century. Both of them together added more than 200 runs.
England turned the tables
Former England batsman Jonathan Trott also questioned Gill’s strategy.
He said, “Initially the English batsmen were under pressure, but as soon as India started throwing short balls, the pressure eased. The English batsmen were waiting for such balls. Runs started coming and they came into their natural game.”
Trott also said that even if a batsman gets caught on the boundary, the next batsman would do the same.
However, Varun Aaron left no stone unturned in praising Jamie Smith.
He said, “Smith is an amazing batsman. Despite so many fielders on the leg side, he played great shots. This shows how much confidence he has. He is amazing with both the red and white ball. He has a bright future.”
