India had a great start in the 1st Test against England at Headingley, Leeds. Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal both scored centuries, while Rishabh Pant ended Day 1 not out on 65. By the end of the day, India totaled 359 runs for three wickets in 85 overs. This marks only the third time two Indian batsmen have scored 100s on the first day of a tour, and it’s also the third-highest total for Day 1 in this context.
While Gill and Jaiswal were the stars of the show, Pant also made his mark, hitting 65 runs off 102 balls, with six fours and two sixes. His innings had a slow start, as he was just 20 runs off 48 balls at one point without hitting a boundary. Sunil Gavaskar, who was commentating, joked about it, saying, Maybe he is waiting for me to finish my commentary stint, referencing a past comment he made when Pant got out to a poor shot during the 2024-25 Border Gavaskar Trophy. Gavaskar was critical of Pant’s shot back then, saying it was a bad decision and let the team down.
On the match front, Jaiswal and Gill showed they are ready to lead India’s batting now that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not in the picture. Their partnership was key, as they added 129 runs to bring India to 221 after a shaky start at 92 for two, following quick dismissals of KL Rahul and debutant B Sai Sudharsan. Rishabh Pant added stability alongside Gill as the day came to a close. But the importance of Jaiswal and Gill’s centuries goes beyond just giving India a strong start in this first game of the five-match series.