Former India head coach Ravi Shastri applauded Shubman Gill for hitting his seventh Test century on Wednesday against England at Edgbaston, stating that it showed Gill worked hard on his defence and looked great overall in taking India past 300. On day 1, Gill hit his second Test century in as many games since beginning his Test captaincy with a fine 147 at Headingley as well.

“I think India will be pretty happy with where they are at the end of day one. I think this partnership of 99 between Gill and Jadeja has got them out of what could’ve been a spot of bother. But they know they will need to get at least another 150 runs from here at least. Had England made further inroads once they were 211-5, it could’ve been very different. But Shubman Gill’s performance was superb. It was a disciplined performance, he looked fantastic and very solid,” said Shastri on Sky Sports’ broadcast.

“Shubman Gill has worked hard on his defence. When he last came to England, he played with hard hands, pushed at the ball, a bit like Virat Kohli. But now, the top hand is in much more control. He allows the ball to come to him, trusts in his defence and has all the shots in the book when he goes on the attack,” he further added.

READ HERE: Jasprit Bumrah Opens Up On Dropped Catches Against England

He also said the 99-run stand between Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja, who’s unbeaten on 41, has to be there in the first hour.

“It’s all about that first hour for India tomorrow. They can probably afford to lose one wicket in the first hour to stay on track. England know that if they get a couple of early wickets tomorrow in the first hour of play, then they have a great chance of restricting India,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Nasser Hussain, the former England captain, also said the same as well. He also felt England’s bowlers couldn’t be blamed for their efforts on a flat pitch.

“I think it’s more keep your eyes on India tomorrow than what can England do. There’s no way they should’ve lost 7-41 in that first innings on the second day and 6-31 in the second innings at Headingley. As Ravi said, they should be getting this total up to 450 and beyond tomorrow. They’ve virtually completely changed their lower-order here. My eyes are on India tomorrow. Can they make up for their mistakes last time?”

“England will feel very much the same as they did after day one at Headingley. But it’s probably a bit more of a missed opportunity. Before this 99-run partnership between Gill and Jadeja, they were ahead of the game whereas they were never really ahead at Headingley. One thing Stokes has, not just because of his leadership but because of results, is he has the belief and backing of his bowling attack. A tough day at the office, back-to-back bowling days for them and Carse limping off, but you can’t fault the effort there of the bowlers,” he concluded.