Shubman Gill falls to Harry Brook’s ploy as England batter gets into mind of India captain with ‘triple century’ remark

Harry Brook might not have taken any wicket in his five overs, but the England batter did play a part in the dismissal of India captain Shubman Gill, who was looking well on course for a deserved triple hundred on the second day of the ongoing second Test in Birmingham.   

Having started on an overnight score of 114 not out, Gill, who took over the India captaincy from Rohit Sharma, showed true commitment and kept his intent right as the right-hander became the first Indian captain to score a double hundred in England. 

Not just his double hundred, Gill also went past the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Virat Kohli for a plethora of records on his way to 269 off 387 balls during his 509-minute stay in the middle. While Gill looked certain to reach his maiden first-class triple hundred, Brook’s ploy post lunch worked wonders for the Ben Stokes-led England. 

In the second over after Lunch, Brook, who was standing at slip, tried to distract Gill in is own way. While the stump mic did not catch what the Englishman said, the 25-year-old did the blunder of responding to the banter on two occasions during the over bowled by Shoaib Bashir. 

Brook’s works certainly distracted Gill as the Indian captain lost his concentration in the next over, dragging onto his stumps off Josh Tongue. 

What did Harry Book say to Shubman Gill?

Former England captain Michael Atherton, who was at the commentary box, decoded Brook’s words against Gill. “290s is the hardest,” were Brook’s words to Gill, clarified by Atherton. The 57-year-old also stated that Brook did also ask Gill, “How many triple centuries have you got?”

Had Gill scored a triple hundred, he would have become the first Indian captain to reach the milestone in Test cricket. Notably, Virender Sehwag and Karun Nair are the only two Indians with triple hundreds in Tests.   

Riding on knocks from Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal (87) and Ravindra Jadeja (89), India put on a mammoth 587 all out in their first innings. For England, offie Shoaib Bashir took three wickets.