Shubman Gill's magnificent century on Day 4 of the second Test against England has earned India's batting juggernaut's praise. Gill's run spree continued in the second Test continued on Day 4 as he followed up his first innings' 269 with a superlative 161 in the second as India declared their innings at 427/6 to hand England a mammoth total of 608 runs to chase.
Right after Gill's century, Virat Kohli, who recently retired from Tests, took to Instagram and posted a special story for the India captain.
In his Instagram story, Kohli wrote, "Well played star boy, Rewriting history. Onwards and upwards from here. You deserve all of this."
Leading up to the series against England, there was considerable pressure on the newly appointed India's Test captain Gill. He hadn't scored a century in SENA countries previously. Furthermore, with the recent Test retirements of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravichandran Ashwin, Gill faced the responsibility of leading a side in transition. Adding to the pressure was the fact that he would be batting at the No. 4 position, a spot made iconic by Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar. However, Gill made his intentions clear right from the start of the series. In the first innings of the Headingley Test, he played a brilliant knock of 147 runs. Unfortunately, his century went in vain as England successfully chased down a target of over 370 runs to win the match.
Gill might have played a slightly loose shot in the first innings of the Headingley Test, but he learned from that experience. In the Edgbaston Test, he demonstrated great resilience and determination, scoring a magnificent 269 runs in the first innings, which helped India reach a substantial total of 587.
The right-handed batsman then ensured that India capitalized on the advantage of a 180-run lead by scoring another impressive innings of 161 runs in the second innings. As a result of this stellar performance, he now holds the record for the second most runs scored in a single Test match for India, only behind the legendary Sunil Gavaskar.
Kohli had announced his retirement from Test cricket earlier in the year, just days before the squad for the England series was to be revealed. He shared a detailed statement on Instagram, confirming his decision to step away from the longest format of the game. During the squad announcement for the England tour, the chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, confirmed that Kohli had contacted him in April 2025 to inform him of his intention to retire from Test cricket. Kohli played a total of 123 Test matches, scoring 9230 runs at an average of 46.85, including 30 centuries and 31 half-centuries. Coming back to the Edgbaston Test, India declared their second innings at 427 for the loss of six wickets, setting England a challenging target of 608 runs. KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, and Rishabh Pant also made significant contributions with half-centuries for the visiting side. In the first innings of the match, India had secured a lead of 180 runs after an excellent six-wicket haul by Mohammed Siraj bundled out England for 407 runs.