'It is a hard place to captain...': Naseer Hussain's major warning for Shubman Gill after England batters' dominance on Day 2

After India posted a formidable first-inning total of 471 on the second day of the Headingley Test, England clawed their way back into the game through their 'Bazball' batting style and hammered the opposing bowlers all around the stadium in Leeds. After losing Zak Crawley early in the innings, Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope formed a massive 122-run stand to put the visitors on the back-foot. The latter eventually went on to score a hundred as the hosts capped off the day on 209/3, trailing the Men in Blue by 262 runs.

Though Jasprit Bumrah did manage to dismiss Duckett on 62 and then got the huge wicket of Joe Root for 28 runs during the final few overs of the day, the Three Lions dominated especially during the third session. The Indian bowling contingent will definitely be hoping to perform better on the third day.

Hussain feels that it will be hard for Gill to lead the team

Ahead of Day 3, former England captain Naseer Hussain stated that it will be a big challenge for a young and inexperienced captain like Shubman Gill to deal with the England batters' relentless attack and added that Headingley is a 'hard place to captain in'.

ALSO READ: Why India and England players wearing black arm bands on Day 3 of India vs England 1st Test at Headingley?

"That is the challenge for Shubman Gill, especially here at Headingley. It is risk-reward. You have to keep your catchers in, but you realise you are going to go for boundaries. It is such a hard place to captain for that reason," Hussain said, as quoted by Sky Sports.

It will certainly be a big task for Gill to pick his bowlers wisely not only because he doesn't have much experience of doing so, but also because he wouldn't want to put too much pressure on Bumrah by giving him long spells. The star pacer recently returned after sustaining a back injury during the fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar series 2024/25 against Australia in January. That setback saw him remain out of action during the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy.

ALSO READ: 'Jasprit Bumrah is the best bowler in the world...': England pacer makes stunning claim following the 31-year-old's Day 2 heroics

Ahead of the England Tests, India head coach Gautam Gambhir had announced that Bumrah will only be featuring in three out of the five Tests as the 31-year-old needs to take care of his body. Gill & Co. will be hoping that the other bowlers step up their game on the third day of the match in Leeds so that they do not have to rely too much on Bumrah.