India captain Shubman Gill has addressed the incident involving England opener Zak Crawley during the final moments of Day 3 in the Lord’s Test, clarifying the reasons behind the on-field confrontation. According to Gill, the Indian team was frustrated after the England openers arrived 90 seconds late to begin their innings, a delay the visitors found unacceptable.
England went on to defeat India by 22 runs in the third Test at the historic Lord’s Cricket Ground. The closing stages of Day 3 saw tensions flare, with Gill engaging in a heated exchange with Crawley, joined by a few other Indian players.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the fourth Test in Manchester, set to begin on Wednesday, July 23, Gill was asked if he regretted his conduct and whether his aggressive approach may have backfired. The Indian captain responded with a clarification.
“Lot of people have been talking about it. So, let me just clear the air once and for all. The English batsmen on that day, they had seven minutes of play left. They were 90 seconds late to come to the crease. Not 10, not 20, 90 seconds.”
"They were 90 seconds late to come to the pitch. Not 10, not 20, 90 seconds late"
Shubman GIll questions whether England's conduct on the third evening at Lord's was against the spirit of the game 👀 pic.twitter.com/uCnsqCXDyP
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) July 22, 2025
The 25-year-old acknowledged that India would have also tried to face fewer deliveries if they were in a similar situation. However, Shubman Gill criticized England’s approach, calling it against the spirit of the game. He explained:
“Even if we were in that position, we would have liked to play lesser overs, but there’s a manner to do it and we felt… Yes, if you get hit on your body, the physios are allowed to come on. That is fair, but to come 90 seconds late on the crease is not something that comes in the spirit of the game.”
“There Was Reason Behind It” – Shubman Gill Denies Claims Of ‘Acting’
After the events that unfolded late on Day 3 at Lord’s, many experts speculated whether Gill was putting on an act and intentionally displaying aggression. Some even suggested he was attempting to imitate Virat Kohli. However, the young Indian captain dismissed all such claims, asserting that the confrontation wasn’t staged. The right-hander clarified:
“Just leading up to that event, lot of things that we thought should not have happened had happened. It would not say it’s something that I am very proud of, but there was a lead up and build up to that. It just didn’t come out of nowhere and we had no intention of doing that whatsoever, but you are playing a game to win and there are a lot of emotions involved.”
“When you see there are things happening that should not happen, sometimes the emotions come out of nowhere,” Gill concluded.
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