Gill & Jaiswal tons punish England toss decision

First Rothesay Test, Headingley (day one of five)

India 359-3: Gill 127*, Jaiswal 101, Pant 65*; Stokes 2-43

England: yet to bat

England won the toss

Scorecard

Shubman Gill marked his debut as India captain with a century and opener Yashasvi Jaiswal added a sparkling ton of his own as England toiled after winning the toss on the opening day of the first Test.

Following the retirement of superstars Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, India proved the future of their batting is in safe hands, while at the same time showing England what they are up against in this five-Test series.

The tourists moved to 359-3 on a sticky, oppressive day at Headingley. Jaiswal, the 23-year-old opener who destroyed England in India 18 months ago, crunched 101 and Gill elegantly stroked his way to 127 not out.

Gill's ongoing partnership with Rishabh Pant is worth 138, Pant ominously poised on 65 not out.

Ben Stokes' decision at the toss will be pored over. Despite the heat and a pitch offering no obvious encouragement for the bowlers, Gill said he also would have fielded first.

And, after making their choice, England were collectively below par with the ball, failing to exploit the swing on offer throughout the day. Stokes himself was the pick, bowling briskly for his 2-43.

This ground has a long history of teams coming from behind to win Tests and England are far from out of this one, though have left themselves vulnerable to a changing weekend weather forecast that could be perfect for India pace magician Jasprit Bumrah.

On the 10 occasions they have won the toss in home Tests since Stokes became captain, England have batted first only once. The previous six Tests at Headingley have been won by the team that bowled first.

It is a luxury to evaluate Stokes' decision in hindsight - and it may yet prove to be the correct one - though cricketing logic around the surface, overhead conditions and rapid outfield suggested Friday was a batting day.

One other factor that should have been taken into account was the England attack. Chris Woakes has bowled little on his return from an ankle injury and neither Josh Tongue nor Brydon Carse had played a first-class match at Headingley before. Perhaps they would have been more effective bowling with England runs behind them.

Still, to focus on England's shortcomings would do a disservice to India's young batters, who were magnificent.

For all of the superstar qualities of Kohli in particular, India never won a Test series in this country with him or Rohit in the side.

This new-look team have made a strong start in their bid to end that wait for success in the UK, stretching back to 2007.

Jaiswal plundered 712 runs when these teams met in India at the beginning of 2024 and simply picked up where he left off. Too often England offered width and he gobbled up the scoring opportunities with drives and cuts.

He was discomforted on 19 by a Carse blow to the ribs - an area England did not explore often enough. Jaiswal also struggled with pain in his right hand as he approached three figures.

A dab into the off side completed a sixth Test hundred and continued a remarkable record that has seen the left-hander make tons in his first matches in the West Indies, Australia and now England. It was the first Test century by an Asian opener at Headingley and Jaiswal has the most runs of any India batter after 20 Tests.

A stand of 129 with Gill was ended when Stokes rushed one into Jaiswal's off stump. By this point, Gill was into his drives, pulls, and touches behind square on the off side.

The 25-year-old captain could have been run out on one, but Ollie Pope's throw at the non-striker's end missed the stumps. On 97, Gill had to dive for his ground after Pant refused a single to Stokes at mid-on.

When Gill drove Tongue for four, he had his first hundred outside of Asia and became the fifth Indian man to mark his first Test as captain with a century. He completed his emotional celebrations with a bow to the dressing room, the new skipper leading his team from the front.

Regardless of the toss decision, England would have to bowl at some point in the match and better than they did on Friday. They were without the injured Mark Wood and Gus Atkinson, while the excitement over a potential return for Jofra Archer will only grow when he plays for Sussex on Sunday.

Recognising the need to bowl full at Headingley, England did at least push it up early on, though that allowed Jaiswal and KL Rahul to drive their way to an opening stand of 91.

When Carse had Rahul edge a drive to Joe Root at first slip, then Stokes had debutant Sai Sudharsan caught down the leg side, India were 92-2 at lunch and honours were even. That was the best it got for England.

Only Stokes, looking supremely fit, was a threat across the afternoon and evening. As England rotated the pacers from one end, off-spinner Shoaib Bashir was toyed with by the visitors.

Pant announced his arrival by skipping and belting Stokes straight for four. From then on, he curbed his aggressive instincts to support Gill, but could not resist one straight flay off Bashir for six.

England eagerly took the new ball with 20 minutes of the day remaining. Pant got down on one knee to sweep Woakes through mid-on, whacked Carse back over his head, then hacked Woakes for six. It summed up England's chastening day.