LONDON: Almost four years ago, it was here at the Lord's India registered one of their most remarkable wins in Test cricket. Then skipper Virat Kohli gave a fiery pep talk that inspired the team to the historic triumph. Defending 272 on the last day, Kohli gathered his men in a huddle and delivered a short but powerful message roaring, “Let them know we’re here to win. If I see anyone laughing, see what happens. Got it? For the 60 overs they should feel hell out there."
The end result — England were bowled out for 120 giving India a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
Cut to present, the most successful Test captain the country ever had is not here in India whites but the team, led by Shubman Gill, seems determined to do what their predecessors couldn't do in the last 18 years - win a series at Old Blighty in the longest format of the game.
As Kohli and Co did at the Lord's, Gill and his team fashioned a memorable victory at Edgbaston, Birmingham on Sunday levelling the five-match series 1-1. What made it more memorable was their loss at Leeds, Headingley in the first Test where they were ahead of their opponents for almost four days only to end up on the losing side on the final day.
Usually, after such a morale-breaking loss, it's difficult to regroup and deliver but the visitors not only did that but also created history by winning the match by 336 runs, their biggest triumph overseas in terms of runs.
While that victory four years ago silenced naysayers who were questioning India's Test credentials overseas, the win in Birmingham has given belief to Gill and Co, who went into the series as underdogs especially with veterans like Kohli, Rohit Sharma and R Ashwin retiring from Tests.
With the Lord's their next stop, their past unforgettable victory at the venue can only spur on this new-look team to continue their winning streak intact. R Sridhar, who was India's fielding coach during the 2021-22 England tour, still remembers the historic win at the iconic venue very clearly.
"At Lord's we were actually in a hopeless situation heading into day 5. We were hardly 150 runs ahead at the beginning of Day 5 losing more than half the side and England were way ahead of the game," Sridhar told this daily. "The message from the captain was simple - try and add as many runs as possible and then see we can get them all out within that."
Mohammed Shami (56 not out) and Jasprit Bumrah (34 not out) added unbroken 89 runs for the ninth wicket as India declared their innings at 298 giving England a target of 272 off 60 overs. "Just like Birmingham, the declaration was delayed at the Lord's. Virat could have declared at lunch but he delayed it. Times are different, scorelines are different but the leadership was quite the same I would say. The message was very clear from Virat, let's give them 60 minutes of hell. It probably was the best huddle talk and will go down in the history of the game."
Speaking on Shami and Bumrah's partnership, Sridhar said, "Fortunately, Shami turned up with the bat and Bumrah played with a lot of grit. England bowlers were also in a kind of revenge mode for Bumrah because earlier he had bounced Anderson and others. In that way they kind of lost the plot in terms of plan and its execution and played into our hand. That is what sports is all about. There is nothing right or wrong. (If) the result goes our way, it will be regarded as a great tactic and if the result doesn't go our way it will be considered as a bad tactic which is wrong in a way but that will be the case even in future. That particular England tactic worked in our favour as Bumrah and Shami batted brilliantly. They brought a sense of respectability to our score and then Virat really pumped up the team."
Sridhar was all praise for the India new-ball bowlers and credited them for defending the target in the second match but said it will be too early to say anything on Gill the captain. "It's too early to say anything. Gill is just two matches old as a captain. The team played really well in Edgbaston, the new ball bowlers defended the total very clearly as simple as that and Shubman is evolving as a captain, I can see him taking inputs from seniors like Rahul and Pant, I think there is a lot of camaraderie there. I was on air throughout the day and could hear a lot of stump talks which reflected the kind of democratic leadership that Shubman is cultivating. He is someone who will learn the tricks of the trade as he progresses. The move with Washington Sundar just before lunch is one he will always be proud of. He is a fast learner and there will be many opportunities that present itself to him to learn. I am looking forward to Gill leading and playing his first match at the Lord's and making a real moment."
The former India support staff, however, asserted the Gill-led side doesn't need inspiration from the past and they will script their own history. "This young team doesn't need inspiration from the past. They are a very inspired lot, they are out there to script their own history. They are not out there to repeat history. They will write their script which no one can visualise or kind of think about. They don't care what happened in the previous Test or what happened at the Lord's in the past. They wouldn't get intimidated. Instead, they get out there and play their own brand of cricket they love playing. That's about this generation. So leave alone history and everything, they are not too much into that."
It was at the Lord's India began their Test journey almost a century ago in 1932. When Gill and his teammates take the field on Thursday, their apparent goal would be to own the venue, which has been kind to them in the recent past, and take a step forward in their bid to create history of their own.
