“In this series, I tried to go back to my original words. I tried to bat as soon as I in my childhood. I did not think of reaching 35-40 runs or playing a long innings. I just wanted to enjoy my batting,” Gill told the host broadcaster after smashing 269 off 387 balls.
His record-breaking innings operated India till 587 in the first innings of the second Test and broke several milestones on the way. It’s now Highest test score by an Indian On the English soil, in 1979, Sunil overtook Sunil Gavaskar’s 221 in Ull, and the highest crossed 254 of Virat Kohli by an Indian test captain*.
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But there was a cricketer behind the number who admitted that he had lost something on the way.
“Sometimes, when you don’t scoring you do not have fluent, you stop enjoying your batting. You focus a lot on the need to score runs. I felt that I was lost in my batting. I was focusing so much that I was not enjoying my batting.” He said.
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“I worked mainly on my early movement and my setup. Earlier, I felt that my batting was going well. I was scoring 30-35-40 runs in test matches. But at some point, I was missing the time of that summit concentration. Many people say that when you focus too much, you sometimes miss your extreme time.”
Gill who captained Gujarat Titans In IPL 2025, preparations for the red ball began during the IPL, which was expected to have a technical change required for the England series.
“Because IPL setup, white-ball setup, and what I wanted to do there was very different. So I thought if I started my preparation, it would give me an edge when the time comes for the series.”
He admitted that switching formats are not always smooth.
“This is very difficult. Especially the way T20 is played nowadays … It is easy to go from T20 to T20, but it is a little difficult to get back from T20 because you are practicing in a way with your team and your tendency is tuned for it.”
“It is challenging to control it and optimize my mind and body again and again. That is why I started training for tests during IPL itself.”
Recalling his conversation with team mentor Gautam Gambhir During tea 1 day, Gill said:
“I came out and talked to GG (Gautam Gambhir) brother. I said to him,” I am not getting run independently, even though there are a lot of shots in my arsenal. ” I also felt that the ball was a bit soft … Still, my mindset was that if the wicket is good and I am set, no matter how long I bat, I should not leave the match halfway. ,
“In the previous match, I learned that under these conditions, there could be a fall in the lower order at any time. So I tried to stay out until I could.”
Among the 2 -day stumps, England was 77/3, in which visitors were topped in India’s pace unit. Gill carried forward the team’s bowling strategy.
“I think once the ball becomes a little old, it becomes difficult to take a wicket. Therefore, the more we bowl in one field and disappoint our batsmen, the better.”
“We will try to score them only in one area … I think our bowlers actually executed their plans well.”
“(Pitch) There is not much for the bowlers, but it is enough that if a batsman tries a lot, there is a possibility of getting out … we will try to disappoint them and will not give them an opportunity to score.”
(With input from PTI)
