England vs India 2nd Test: Shubman Gill has had a magnificent England tour so far and came up with yet another memorable effort with the bat in the second Test at Edgbaston on Thursday. Gill smashed his maiden double century in Tests and helped India reach a dominating position.
Gill played an impressive 269-run knock as India reached 587 runs in their first innings before getting bowled late on the second day. The Indian skipper also ended up breaking a plethora of records on the way.
While Gill looked pretty satisfied with his impactful effort in the middle, the BCCI shared a wholesome video of the captain's day out. Apart from the behind-the-scenes of his interactions with media and various fans on the ground and in the team hotel, it also revealed his parents, Lakhwinder Singh and Keart Gill’s audio message for him.
Lakhwinder felt hugely proud and peaceful at seeing his son's marathon knock, saying that it reminded him of his childhood days. However, Gill revealed that he also reminded him that the 25-year-old missed the chance to score a triple-century.
"Shubman beta, well played. I really enjoyed watching your batting. It gave me a lot of peace of mind. When you were younger, under 16 or 19, you used to bat like that. And I felt very proud," Lakhwinder can be heard saying in the video via Gill’s phone.
"It was very nice to see your batting. Keep going. God bless you," Keart adds in the message.
Gill went on to mention how much it means to him, given that he started playing the sport for his father.
"I went to the pool for some recovery, came back, and showered… This message means a lot to me," he said. "I think growing up, I played almost all of my cricket for my dad. In the sense that it was because of him that I started playing cricket. And the only person, he and my best friend, with whom I practised. These are the only two people, when it comes to my cricket, that I care about and that I listen to. So, it means a lot coming from him. But he also told me that I missed my triple century. Hopefully, we will end this match on a great note," he added with a smile.
On the back of 30 fours and three sixes, Gill recorded his highest score in Test cricket.
Later in the day, India reduced England to 77/3 with Akash Deep (2/36) and Mohammed Siraj (1/21), with the hosts still trailing by 510 runs.