Ryan ten Doeschate, the India assistant coach, thinks the team will let captain Shubman Gill off for his careless dismissal on day one of the fifth Test against England at The Oval.
Gill looked good thanks to his solid technique but made a bad decision on the second ball of the 28th over. He pushed the ball and ran for a single but soon realized it wasn’t possible.
Gus Atkinson picked up the ball, hit the stumps and sent Gill back to the pavilion for 21 off 35 balls. Fans and former players were critical of the Indian captain for his mistake. But Doeschate defended Gill, saying he was in great form.
I’m sure it’s more frustrating for him than for us. He’s in good nick. He made batting look easy for the short time he was out there. But these things happen. England bowled well in that period. We talked about how we were scoring because hitting boundaries wasn’t easy, Doeschate told reporters after the day’s play.
I thought all the batters scored well around the stumps. It’s about balancing the pressure on the bowlers and fielders with taking easy runs. But that was a misjudged run. Given his performance in the first four Tests, we can forgive him for this one, he said.
In the fifth Test at The Oval, London, Gill surpassed Sunil Gavaskar’s record for the most runs by an Indian captain in a Test series. Gavaskar scored 732 runs in a home series against the West Indies in 1978-79 with an average of 91.50, including four centuries and a fifty. His highest score was 205.
Read Also:- Chris Woakes Ruled Out of Final Test Due to Injury
Gill surpassed Gavaskar with 737 runs in nine innings with an average of 92.12, four centuries and his highest score of 269. He is also the top scorer in the five-match series. The 25-year-old is 38 runs away from holding the Indian record for the most runs in a bilateral Test series which Gavaskar currently holds.
He could have got to the record in the first innings itself showing his strong technique. But a lapse in concentration led to Atkinson hitting the stumps and Gill being run out for 21 off 35 balls. After Gill’s dismissal Karun Nair helped steady the innings with an unbeaten 52 off 98 balls and took India to 204/6 by the end of the day.
