The Lord’s Cricket Ground witnessed a tense and dramatic end to Day 3 of the third Test between India and England. A quiet day of grind turned combustible in its final six minutes. What should have been a routine close switched into heated exchanges between Shubman Gill’s fired-up India and a wily England opening pair, who deployed every trick to ensure the hosts faced just as few balls as they could before stumps.
How animated version of Gill overpowered
It all kicked off after India were bowled out for 387, exactly matching England’s first innings score. This gave the visitors a slim six-minute window to try and land a late blow. Jasprit Bumrah took the new ball, but England’s openers, Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett, had other plans. Crawley, in particular, slowed the tempo, pulling away from his stance twice and even calling for physio attention after seemingly hurting his finger while middling a ball.
Shubman Gill, already animated, couldn’t hide his frustration. The stump mic picked up expletives aimed at Crawley, with Gill reportedly shouting, “Grow some f*** b****,” just two balls into the over. As Crawley called for treatment, Gill, Bumrah, and the Indian fielders gathered around him with sarcastic claps and thinly veiled mockery.
It was a rare flash of anger from the otherwise composed Indian skipper, and one that drew a reaction from both sides. With Gill leading the charge against the English openers, who were visibly trying to slow down the tempo, the entire Indian team looked quite threatening. Whether Gill or his men are fined or not is a different case, but the incident has certainly amped up the feel of the series.
Tim Southee hits back at Gill
Post-play, England bowling consultant Tim Southee fired back. “I’m not sure what they were complaining about when Shubman Gill was lying down getting a massage in the middle of the day yesterday,” he said with a wry smile. “It’s obviously part of the game when you’re near the end of the day. It’s an exciting way to finish the day.”
He even cheekily added that Crawley would be “assessed overnight,” keeping the tongue-in-cheek tone going. Yet, Southee insisted the series has been played in “good spirit,” chalking up the flare-up to fatigue and competitive fire. KL Rahul, meanwhile, played peacemaker with perspective. ““I understand from an opening batter’s point of view. I know exactly what was going on, and everyone knows exactly what was going on.,” he said. “We wanted to bowl two overs. There were six minutes left. It is a no-brainer that any team will bowl two overs with six minutes to go, but it was a bit of theatrics at the end.”
