NEW DELHI: Tension gripped the Indian camp when captain Shubman Gill was struck hard on the head while fielding at first slip during Day 3 of the second Test against England at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Friday.The incident occurred during Ravindra Jadeja’s over, when Harry Brook unleashed a powerful drive off one of his deliveries. The ball flew off the bat with pace, giving Gill very little time to react — and struck him on top of the head.Gill appeared to be in pain. He showed his head to Rishabh Pant and then signalled for the physio.
The physio rushed out to assess him, provided some treatment, and thankfully, Gill looked better and resumed fielding shortly after.WATCH:Earlier in the match, Gill had been full of emotion after receiving a heartfelt message from his parents following his career-best 269.The 25-year-old made history by becoming the first Indian captain to score a double hundred in England, and the first Indian batter to hit a double ton in Tests outside Asia since Virat Kohli’s 200 in 2016.His monumental knock not only broke Kohli’s record of 254* for the highest score by an Indian Test captain, but also surpassed Sachin Tendulkar’s 241* as the highest by an Indian batter in a Test outside Asia.After the day’s play, the BCCI shared a video in which Gill was seen listening to voice messages from his parents. The emotional moment clearly meant a lot to him.“Means a lot coming from him,” Gill said. “Growing up, I played all of my cricket for my dad. It was because of him I started playing cricket. He and my best friend, whom I practised with, are the only two people I care about and listen to when it comes to cricket. But he also said I missed my triple century.”Gill’s knock helped India post a mammoth 587 — their highest Test total in England in 18 years.
