Leeds [UK], June 21 : Former England captain Nasser Hussain highlighted the challenge for a young Indian skipper Shubman Gill to deal with a fiery Three Lions batting attack, saying that Headingley is a "hard place to captain in".
After managing 471 runs in their first innings with three centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman and Rishabh Pant, India did get an early wicket of Zak Crawley thanks to Jasprit Bumrah, but England ended the second session at 107/1 in 24 overs, with Ben Duckett (53*) and Ollie Pope (48*) playing some seriously attacking cricket.
Speaking on air as quoted by Sky Sports, the ex-England captain said, "That is the challenge for Shubman Gil, 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," he added.
Moreover, Michael Atherton spoke on the partnership, "The first half of the partnership was fashioned in tricky conditions, but it feels better now with the cloud lifting and bits of blue sky."
"They have come through the hardest part of the day, but things change by the hour at Headingley."
Notably, India has a poor record at Headingley, having won just two out of seven Tests so far, losing four and drawing one. Their previous match at Leeds in 2021 under Virat Kohli's captaincy was a loss by an innings and 76 runs.
Coming to the match, England opted to bowl first. Centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal (101 in 159 balls, with 16 fours), skipper Shubman Gill (147 in 227 balls, with 19 fours and a six) and Pant (134 in 178 balls, with 12 fours and six sixes) took India to 471 all out. Skipper Ben Stokes (4/66) and Josh Tongue (4/86) were the top bowlers for England.
England ended the second session at 107/1, trailing by 364 runs.