Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill lead India to a commanding position on Day 3 in Chennai. Discover highlights and analysis of their outstanding performances.
Introduction:
INDIA seals success in Chennai on Day Three of the Test to gain absolute control over Bangladesh as Rishabh Pant reached his sixth century and Shubman Gill added a serenely fifth. Batmen found remarkable composure and counterattacking prowess on the pitch which offered little to bowlers, setting a target of 515 while Indian bowlers worked hard, taking four wickets as Bangladesh faced a daunting 357-run deficit at the end of the day.
India’s Notable Declaration and Clinical Batting
India declared their innings after registering a dominating total of 515, giving their bowlers ample time to disrupt Bangladesh’s lineup. Day Three proved most amenable to batting with seam movement at 1.3 degrees on the first day dropping to a meager 0.4 degrees by the third day; however, India could only muster 206 runs off just 41 overs while still booking only 16 false shots.
See also: Bumrah and Siraj Dismantle Bangladesh; India Lead by Over 300 Runs
Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill: Masterclass Batting
Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant were the master architects for India’s success in the second innings. These two aggressive batsmen, who were inculcating the situation, played selectingly. They showed a lot of patience as they knew that only poor decision-making could haunt them with their dismissals. Gill was really impressive as he dominated Mehidy Hasan Miraz, smashing four sixes to bring up 28 sixes in his 26th Test. Meanwhile, he completely dismissed Shakib Al Hasan’s left-arm spin, smashing four sixes to attain 59 sixes in his 34-match Test career-securing seventh highest total for India.
See also: Kanpur Test: India’s Aggressive Approach Stuns Bangladesh Day 4
India’s overall tally of 85 sixes in 2024 leaves them with five shy of breaking the record for most sixes by a team in a calendar year.
Respecting the Conditions: A Display of Maturity
Gill and Pant were unlike Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma, who tried to muscle their way to form the previous evening, searching for ways to force their way into good form. Gill showed maturity in respecting good balls and patiently waiting for the right ones to punish. Two towering sixes off Gill over long-on in the seventh over of the day set the tone for the morning session. Pant, who wanted not to repeat the mistake that was committed in the first innings wherein he got out, was particularly conservative throughout the initial part of his innings.
With lunch approaching, Pant stepped out to take on the attack and prove a point. His ramp-sweep off Hasan Mahmud for six was the shot of the morning. Gill picked up pace before lunch as well, giving a hint that the declaration might be around the corner. But Pant got a lifeline when Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto dropped a skier just moments before the break. Unabated, Pant slammed two more boundaries and took India into the lunch session with their momentum firmly in place.
The Post-Lunch Charge and Declaration
Pant, post his lunch, began to display some of his trademark flick shots, cutting and driving his way to a century in 118 balls. Gill was more cautious, though, but brought up his own hundred in 161 balls, while KL Rahul chipped in with a few classy drives. India declared their innings pretty soon after, giving Bangladesh just an hour’s batting before tea.
Bangladesh Response and Ashwin’s Masterclass
Bangladesh started their second innings with purpose, especially Zakir Hasan, who played some crisp shots to drive Mohammed Siraj for six. With the ball no longer offering much movement, Zakir and Shadman Islam looked okay early on, punishing any wayward deliveries.
But R Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah applied pressure after tea. Ashwin, though blown away for four sixes, toiled unendingly, slowing down his pace and teasing the batsmen into making mistakes. Zakir was the first to fall after an ambitious drive found Yashasvi Jaiswal, who took a stunning low catch at gully.
Ashwin then continued to torture the batsmen, getting rid of Shadman Islam through a quite clever length ball that induced a leading edge; soon after, Mominul Haque became clean bowled by a ball that drifted and spun enough to just beat the outside edge.
Mushfiqur Rahim attempted to counter back at Ashwin’s pressure by hitting a slog-sweep for six but could not hang around, and was eventually out to KL Rahul from mid-on. Shakib Al Hasan also took his time to settle, but lucked out in the fading light, which brought an early close to the day’s play. Till then, Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto had stabilised his side’s innings, scoring 51 off just 60 balls, with his side at 158/4 at the end of the day.
A Dominant Day for India
Day three of the test match in Chennai will be remembered not only for Pant’s emotional comeback century but also for Gill’s impressive calm maturity as India leaves Bangladesh staring at two days with a mammoth target to chase following India’s aggressive batting as well as their disciplined bowling. In all, the pitch won’t have worsened, which means that it will play tough for them, and Bangladesh will now make a Herculean effort to survive or push for a miraculous win.