Shubman Gill said he was very happy with how his team fought, after their loss to England in the third Test at Lord’s by 22 runs. He did, though, regret that they didn’t have one fifty-run partnership and that Rishabh Pant was run out in the first innings. Ravindra Jadeja fought hard, scoring 61 not out off 181 balls, and almost won the game with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj before the team was out for 170.
Gill said after the game that the Test match was as close as it could get, going all five days and coming down to the last session. He was sure of their chances because they had a lot of batting left, but they needed a couple of 50-run partnerships, which they couldn’t get.
He said that if Pant hadn’t been run out in the first innings, India could have had a 70 to 80-run lead and might not have had to chase almost 200 on a tough fifth-day pitch.
When asked if players were focusing too much on personal milestones, as KL Rahul said he had talked to Pant about reaching his hundred before lunch, Gill said that they had talked about it.
He said that the run-out was a mistake in judging the run, which can happen. He also pointed out that KL Rahul was the one running toward the dangerous end.
He also stood up for Ravindra Jadeja’s choice to not go for big shots when only two wickets were left. Gill said that Jadeja is very experienced and that no message was sent to him. He said that Jadeja batted great with the tail.
He also said, regarding the final hour on day four, that they could have played better.
He finished by saying that they had controlled most of the 15 days of Test cricket, but the bad sessions were so bad that they lost two games and that the series score wouldn’t show how they played.