India captain Shubman Gill criticised and raised questions before the Manchester Test, making a veiled attack on England’s tactics in the final hours of the third Test at Lord’s. Gill expressed his displeasure over how the hosts appeared to slow things down late in the day, specifically citing a 90-second delay that crushed the momentum.
Former England cricketer Nasser Hussain said he was shocked by the Indian captain’s statement. He added that if the roles were swapped, Hussain believed India would do it without thinking twice.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter and current commentator Dinesh Karthik rejected Hussain’s assessment, offering a quick retort, noting that India would not even be allowed to hold up play by that very specific 90 seconds—implying that England took advantage of the timing and situation in a way India is never permitted to in similar end-of-day scenarios.
In one of the press conferences, Gill said,”Yes, a lot of people have been talking about it, so let me just clear the air, once and for all. The English batsmen on that day had seven minutes of play left; they were 90 seconds late to come to the crease — not 10, not 20 — 90 seconds late.”
Take A Look At The Conversation
As per NDTV Sports-
Nasser Hussain: ‘That’s what made me laugh about Shubham Gill’s press conference, really, about England not being in the spirit of the game by delaying things, and England did delay it. Day three, that one over, it was ridiculous, but every side does it, and India will do it tonight. Why would they want extra overs of Jofra Archer under the lights? Who would?’
Dinesh Karthik: Difference being, I don’t think India can take 90 seconds not wanting to bat, or rather not wanting to come down to bat. I think that’s the problem that Shubham Gill said he had. It was just the fact that they came late to take the strike, that he had a problem with.
Karthik also mentioned on Sky Sports’ broadcast- “It’s good to be feisty. You need to have an identity as a captain, and Shubham Gill from that third day at Lord’s has actually shown that he’s got a lot more aggression inside him- and that’s how he wants to lead this Indian team. Yes, the result didn’t go his way, but the point is, It’s made for a thrilling test series so far, and his captaincy is right at the forefront of it, backed by his batting skills as well.”
