Shubman Gill led from the front once more with a second hundred in as many matches as India captain to keep England at bay at Edgbaston on Wednesday.
Gill’s 114 not out was the cornerstone of India’s 310-5 at stumps on the first day of the second Test, with Yashasvi Jaiswal contributing a typically entertaining 87.
India lost two wickets in quick succession to be 211-5 but all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja (41 not out) helped Gill avoid a further collapse in an unbroken stand of 99.
Gill, however, knows better than anyone that individual milestones are no guarantee of team success.
In the first Test at Headingley, India posted five individual hundreds, including Gill’s 147, and still lost — the first time this had happened in more than 60,000 games of first-class cricket.
Batting collapses of 7-41 and 6-31 cost India dear before England, making light of a seemingly stiff target of 371, won by five wickets to go 1-0 up in a five-match series.
England captain Ben Stokes, as he did in Leeds, again opted to field after winning the toss, with England having achieved their all-time record fourth innings victory chase of 378 at Edgbaston, against India, three years ago.
KL Rahul, fresh from a hundred at Headingley, rarely looked comfortable as he laboured for a 26-ball two that ended when he played on to Chris Woakes.
Both Woakes (2-59 in 21 overs) and new-ball partner Brydon Carse (1-49 in 16) kept things tight.
But the pressure England had exerted in a first hour where India were held to 37-1 off 13 overs was released by Josh Tongue, whose 13 wicketless overs cost 66 runs.
England, however, would have been in a stronger position had a couple of close lbw reviews not gone against them on umpire’s call, with batsmen spared by the fact the on-field officials had initially ruled in their favour.
“A couple of decisions go our way early doors and then all of a sudden they’re 30-3 and we’re looking at a completely different day ahead,” Woakes told Sky Sports.
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The all-rounder added: “A couple of wickets early in that last session, which we felt like we could have kicked on and got into the tail, but they played well. ”
Left-hander Jaiswal completed a 59-ball fifty, where 40 of his runs came in fours, with consecutive boundaries off fast bowler Tongue, a hook followed by a rasping cut.
Jaiswal Denied Century
Jaiswal, 62 not out at lunch, look destined for another hundred after his 101 at Headingley until caught behind flat-footedly edging a cut off a loose Stokes delivery, with India then 161-3.
New batsman Rishabh Pant, who in Leeds became only the second wicketkeeper in Test history to score two hundreds in a match, was relatively restrained in taking 23 balls to score his first boundary — a six off Shoaib Bashir.
The off-spinner, however, had his revenge when Pant (25) holed out to long-on.
India’s 208-4 became 211-5 when the recalled Nitesh Kumar Reddy was bowled playing no shot to a Woakes delivery that nipped back off the seam.
But the 25-year-old Gill pulled the lively Stokes in front of square and drove Carse for commanding fours.
Gill though required several minutes of on-field treatment when on 86 for what appeared to be cramp – a delay that led to boos from a capacity crowd at a sun-drenched Edgbaston.
But the jeers turned to cheers when, in the over before England took the new ball, Gill swept part-time off-spinner Joe Root for consecutive fours to complete a watchful 199-ball hundred, including 11 boundaries.
India made three changes, notably resting Jasprit Bumrah after it was announced before the series the outstanding fast bowler would only feature in three of the five Tests in order to protect his fitness following a back injury.
The third Test at Lord’s starts just four days after the scheduled end of the game in Birmingham. Akash Deep was given the unenviable task of replacing Bumrah, the world’s number one-ranked Test bowler.
Both teams and the umpires wore black armbands on Wednesday in memory of former England batsman Wayne Larkins, who died aged 71 last weekend.
