'Told him to not punch..was playing with an old bat': Shubman Gill reveals his message to super-excited Rishabh Pant during 167-run partnership

Shubman Gill smashed his fifth Test century on the third day of the first Test match between India and Bangladesh at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Gill silenced his critics with an astonishing knock. Gill's commanding shots against the Bangladeshi bowlers and his composure throughout his innings were nothing but commendable. In the second innings, Gill played an unbeaten knock of 119 off 176 balls which also included 10 fours and 4 sixes. He joined a game-shifting 167-run stand with Rishabh Pant and after Day 3 he revealed his conversation during their partnership.

Gill during the post-stumps presentation revealed that he was playing with an old bat and told Pant to not hit his bat hard every time they celebrate. He said “I told Rishabh to not punch the bat because I was playing with an old bat. He was hitting my bat so hard and I told him I was saving my bat. If he did not middle the ball while in the middle, he would tell let us do it again. I told him to calm down.”

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In their second innings, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant joined 167 runs off 217 balls, which enabled India to declare at 287/4. After being out of the game early in the first innings for a duck, Gill exuded confidence right away. After scoring a duck in the first innings, he went on to become the first Indian hitter to reach a hundred against Bangladesh. In his last four innings, Gill has scored two hundreds for India in the second innings.

After exercising some prudence early in the third day, Gill fired off two sixes off Mehidy Hasan to complete his fifty. Gill had begun the third day at 33. Subsequently, Pant and Gill began to outclass the Bangladeshi bowlers, reaching their individual hundreds and winning praise from the Indian squad. Gill performed admirably, reaffirming his ranking as the third-best Test hitter in India. When he dismissed the Bangladesh bowlers, he exuded confidence and maturity. In addition, the emerging star moved up to the second rank in the history of most century by an Indian batter in the World Test Championship, surpassing Mayank Agarwal, Rishabh Pant, and Virat Kohli.

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