Why it was worth paying to watch Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill bat on Day 2 of the Dharamsala Test

On the foothills of the scenic snow-capped Middle Himalayan range, inside the perfectly circular quaint stadium with as many colours as there are in those popular bushehri or pahadi topis (Himachali caps), Rohit (103) and Gill (110) played beautiful cricket. The two hundreds of Day 2 of the Test were embedded by several well-timed correct strokes, the kind that sees cricket romantics go weak in their knees. Between them they scored 129 runs in the first session and this was not a brutal assault, this was the classic death by thousand cuts.

Apni ballebaazi se jeete har dil, kamaal khele Shubman Gill 💯🫶#IDFCFirstBankTestSeries #BazBowled #INDvENG #JioCinemaSports pic.twitter.com/VBpIakUekG

— JioCinema (@JioCinema) March 8, 2024

The stand-out stroke of the morning came from Gill’s bat. It was against England’s wily old bowler James Anderson, who was avoiding the drivable length. The tactic wouldn’t work, Gill was prepared to be proactive and take risks. He would take a couple of steps, reach the pitch of the ball but still be conscious of being correct and elegant. He followed the basic principle of the age-old copy-book straight drive – the one played with a perfectly straight elbow position. But he gave the shot a modern-day tweak. On reaching the ball, he would lift the ball and send it over the fence.

Pacers have historically felt insulted when batsmen push them in the V for a boundary. A six over the sight screen after rushing down the track is an embarrassment. When a 24-year-old, read Gill, shows such disdain to a 41-year-old, Anderson; a farewell can be expected to be round the corner.

Soon Gill would strike a four through covers. That one stroke would have delighted the Team India coaching staff more than fans in the stands. Of late there had been a pattern to Gill’s dismissals. Getting stuck on the crease and being late in coming forward, he has got out bowled or lbw. His indecisiveness has seen the ball sneaking between the bat and pad and hitting the stumps. On this day, he would also log in 5 sixes.

The Rohit Rumble Show in Dharamshala🏔️🏟️

Another well-deserved Test 💯for #TeamIndia‘s maverick skipper 🙌#IDFCFirstBankTestSeries #BazBowled #INDvENG #JioCinemaSports pic.twitter.com/A686RXXgCm

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Though Gill has scored over 400 runs in this series, the pundits have pointed out that the “transfer of weight” – the important law that defines the physics of footwork – hasn’t been smooth. Today at Dharamsala, with runs flowing freely, the doubts disappeared and the muscle memory returned. As Wood pitched the ball slightly up, out went the left foot and got planted on the pitch. As a natural reaction, the right eased its grip on the surface and the bat moved to meet the ball with full force. Those good old habits were returning, Gill was back to his best.

Photogenic leave

Not just strokes, there was one Gill photogenic ‘leave’ that would have excited the many camerapersons bunched on the sidelines with their zoom lenses. Wood, in the middle of an inspired spell, gave it his all. A ball from good length climbed up towards Gill’s head. Lesser batsmen would get hit on the helmet grill. It was a mean 146 kph ball, capable of serious damage. But Gill was too focused to be caught off guard. Showing the flexibility of an expert yogi, he swayed away, his abdomen bending back and his legs folding instinctively to provide a base for the body to be stable. He wasn’t rattled by the pace or the sudden bounce. He moved away, stayed low but wasn’t clumsy nor had a fall after averting the danger. He was like an expert gymnast who had stuck his landing perfectly after a difficult routine.

Of hundreds and celebrations! 👏 🙌

Rohit Sharma 🤝 Shubman Gill

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— BCCI (@BCCI) March 8, 2024

Gill’s breath-taking strokeplay came about after Rohit had given the clarion call. As if it was a pre-decided plan, off-spinner Shoaib Bashir was targeted early in the day. As soon as he gave the ball the air and the ball was above the eye-line of the batsmen, six runs would get added to India’s score. Rohit hit the first six of his three sixes of the day and on the next ball when Bashir cut down the flight, Rohit hit a flat straight strike to get four.

Late on Day 1, Rohit, like always, had shown his eagerness to send all short balls over the square leg boundary. So England had a plan in place for him on Day 2. They would pack the leg-side with six fielders all in place to catch the mistimed pull-shot. There was a long leg, deep fine leg, deep square leg, deep mid-wicket, short mid-wicket and wide mid-on. Ben Stokes had a catcher for every eventuality in case Rohit miscued his shot. Wood would bowl short but the Indian captain would move and slap the ball past the acres of space around the mid-off region for four. Rohit never loses shape, form or sleep when the bowlers try to bounce him. Even though it was an unusual and unconventional shot, Rohit wasn’t ungainly.

In the morning session, the England bowlers threw everything they had at Rohit and Gill but the duo didn’t panic or even compromise aesthetically. After lunch they would get out but the damage had been done. There was a pleasing takeaway from the morning session. With an age difference of 12 years between the two equally graceful batsmen, the generational shift wouldn’t make cricket watching dull.