“Utterly chanceless innings”: Atherton, Karthik hail Gill’s masterclass at Birmingham

Birmingham [UK], July 3 (ANI): Former England batter Michael Atherton hailed skipper Shubman Gill’s marathon double century, calling it an “utterly chanceless innings".

Gill continued his fine run in the tour of England as he surpassed several stars of the game and rewrote record books during the Birmingham Test on Thursday.

Speaking on air as quoted by Sky Sports, Atherton, who made 7,728 runs in 115 Tests for England with 16 tons, said, “It has been a masterful performance from Gill – an utterly chanceless innings."

“He has not looked like giving England a sniff at any moment, and there has been an air of inevitability about it all. He is a gorgeous driver through the off-side, has such a flowing game," he concluded.

Former Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik also hailed Gill’s innings as the “most compact" of his long-format career so far.

“He has been controlled every second at the crease. That shows you he is a man sure of his technique, and he knows there are no demons in the pitch, but he has also controlled his mind," Karthik said.

Gill scored a delightful 269 in 387 balls, with 30 fours and three sixes, scoring at a strike rate of 69.51, tiring out bowlers and statisticians alike with each stroke.

He is only the sixth Indian to score a 250-plus score in Tests, joining the elite company of Virender Sehwag, who did it four times, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Karun Nair and Virat Kohli. Gill is the first Indian to do so outside of the Indian subcontinent; the previous best was Sachin’s masterclass of 241* against Australia at Sydney in 2004.

He joined Rahul Dravid (217 at The Oval in 2002) and Sunil Gavaskar (221 at The Oval in 1979) to become the third player to score a double ton for India in England against England in Tests.

Gill became the first-ever Indian captain to reach the double ton against England in England, outdoing Mohammad Azharuddin’s 179 at Old Trafford in 1990.

Also, with a quick flurry of boundaries after the milestone, he leapfrogged past legendary Sunil Gavaskar’s 221 at The Oval in 1979 to have the highest-ever individual score by an Indian in England.

Gill joined the elite company of Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, and Rohit Sharma to become the fourth Indian with a century in Tests and ODIs both.

Gill also surpassed Kohli’s 254* against South Africa in 2019 to have the highest score ever by an Indian captain.

Gill also became the third Indian captain with a 150-plus Test score before turning 26, after Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi (twice) and Sachin Tendulkar.

This is also the second instance of a double ton by an Indian skipper overseas, nine years after Virat Kohli’s 200 against West Indies back in 2016 at North Sound.

The 25-year-old strokeplayer also became the first Asian captain with a double century in South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia (SENA), the previous best score being 193 by Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan at Lord’s in 2011.

He is the second-youngest Indian captain to score a Test double ton at the age of 25 years and 298 days, below Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi against England in Delhi back in 1964 at the age of 23 years and 39 days.

Also, there have been 11 double centuries hit by captains in England, four from the hosts and seven others from visiting teams. It is only South African legend Graeme Smith, who reached the milestone at a younger age than Gill, with knocks of 277 and 259 in back-to-back Tests at Edgbaston and Lord’s in 2003, the first of these coming at an age of 22 years and 175 days.

It took Gill only three innings as a captain to reach his double ton, the joint-quickest for India, alongside Sunil Gavaskar (205 vs WI, Wankhede, 1978).

India at Tea was 564/7, with Gill (265*) and Akash Deep (0*) unbeaten. India kickstarted the second session at 419/6, with Gill (168*) joined by Washington Sundar (1*).

A 144-run stand between the duo helped India dominate the England bowlers and tire them out. (ANI)

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