Ind Vs Eng, Lord's Test | It was an error of judgement: Shubhman Gill on Rishabh Pant’s match changing run out

London: Rishabh Pant getting run out in an attempt to help K L Rahul reach his hundred before lunch on day three of the Lord’s Test was an "error of judgement" but it was not done keeping personal glory in mind, India captain Shubman Gill defended both the senior players after his team lost the third Test.

Speaking to media after the heartbreaking 22-run loss at Lord’s, Gill called Pant’s run out on 74 at the time turned out to be the turning point of the match as India were on course to take a healthy lead. Eventually, India were only able to match England’s first innings score of 387.

“We talk a lot about this keeping the team’s interest ahead of personal milestones. But I think it was an error of judgment, rather than wanting to score 100 runs. I think he said it would be better if he scored 100 runs before the lunch. A batsman feels pressure at 99 runs."

"But at the end of the day, I don't think it was personal and he got run out because of his personal milestone. It was an error of judgment. Rishabh made the call. KL Bhai was running at the danger. I would say it was an error of judgment. It can happen to any batsman."

"Having said that, the most important moment for us was Rishabh's run out. At one point, we thought we could take the lead by 50 or 100 runs. We knew it wouldn't be easy to bat on Day 5. The more lead we get in the first innings, the better for us. It puts the other team on the backfoot as well,” said Gill.

Gill lauds senior pro Jadeja and tail

Ravindra Jadeja (61 not out off 181) batted with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj for close to three hours to take the game deep after India slipped to 112 for eight chasing 193. Captain said it showed Jadeja’s invaluableness to the side and the tail had made a conscious effort to hang around in the middle rather than throwing it away.

“He is one of the most valuable players in India. The experience that he brings in, the skill set that he brings with his bowling, batting and fielding is very rare. And the kind of composure that he showed today, it was just tremendous to watch."

"Batting with the lower order of the tail has been one of the things that we spoke about in the previous two matches. That our lower order hasn't been contributing as much. But I think the character and the courage that they showed was tremendous,” said Gill.

On field tension makes Test cricket more exciting

The game was played in high intensity with both teams going at each other especially from end of day three onwards when India clapped for Zak Crawley in sarcasm with some choicest words as the England opener was deliberately delaying the proceedings to avoid facing Jasprit Bumrah. Gill is all for raising the spectacle of Test cricket.

“You're giving everything. Mentally, physically, everything. There would be times where there would be a little bit of heat from both sides. But I think that's what makes it so exciting. That's what makes it more challenging."

"At the end of the day, there's a lot of admiration within two teams. Both the teams try their best to be able to win a match and perform. There can be moments where there would be some kind of heat. You're in the moment. That's what makes it more exciting,” said Gill.

Did he think at any point India had a chance after Jadeja and tail got stuck in? “When Bumrah Bhai and Jaddu Bhai were batting, every 5 or 6 runs that we were scoring, we could see there was pressure coming on them. Every 5 or 6 runs. And that's all it was."

"A small partnership of 30-40 runs could make such a huge difference. And we were quite optimistic when Siraj was batting that if we just go up to the second new ball and if we have 12 or 15 runs with the second new ball, you never know. A couple of boundaries here and there and then you're right back on the top,” he said.