Shubman Gill’s Royal Debut: Joins Kohli and Gavaskar with Century on Test Captaincy Debut

India vs England, 1st Test: Shubman Gill makes a commanding statement as captain, scoring his maiden century in SENA countries.

Shubman Gill’s Commanding Century Marks a New Era in Indian Test Cricket

The pressure on Shubman Gill was immense, batting at a spot famously owned by legends Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli. Yet, the right-handed batter announced his arrival in style by scoring his first Test century in SENA countries during the opening match of the five-Test series against England at Headingley, Leeds. Batting at No.4, Gill showed intent from the start, playing his natural game without hesitation.

Shubman Gill became only the fifth Indian to score a century on captaincy debut, joining the ranks of Vijay Hazare (1951), Sunil Gavaskar (1976), Dilip Vengsarkar (1987), and Virat Kohli (2014).

Coming out to bat in the second session of Day 1, Gill attacked from the first ball. Bowlers like Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes, and Ben Stokes found it tough to settle as Gill punished loose deliveries with boundaries.

He built a crucial 129-run partnership for the third wicket with Yashasvi Jaiswal, who scored his fifth Test hundred in the second session before falling to Stokes at the start of the third session. With the responsibility on his shoulders after Jaiswal’s dismissal, Gill combined caution and aggression to reach his first century in SENA countries off 140 balls, courtesy of Josh Tongue’s bowling.

Upon reaching his century, Gill celebrated with his signature bow toward the dressing room, soaking in the applause of the Headingley crowd.

Earlier in the day, former India wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik, providing commentary, remarked, “There was a king in Test cricket, now there’s a prince.” Ahead of the series, Gill faced significant pressure due to his overseas record and doubts over his captaincy. However, he let his bat do the talking, proving critics wrong with a commanding performance.

India dominate on Day 1 

England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to field first, asking India to bat. However, he soon regretted this decision as the visitors made full use of the favorable batting conditions.

KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal put on a 91-run opening partnership. Shubman Gill then joined in as India continued to pile pressure on the hosts.

Debutant Sai Sudharsan failed to make an impact, getting trapped down the leg side and dismissed for a duck by England captain Stokes.

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