Gill & Jaiswal Herald New Dawn with Dazzling Tons as India Dominate Day 1 at Headingley

A new era for Indian Test cricket dawned in spectacular fashion at Headingley, as twin centuries from new captain Shubman Gill and the phenomenal Yashasvi Jaiswal left England regretting their decision to bowl first on a day of Indian dominance. On the opening day of the first Test for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, India reached a commanding 359 for 3 at stumps, laying a formidable foundation in the post-Kohli-Sharma era. After England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and opted to utilize the overcast conditions, his bowlers failed to find the consistent threat required. Openers KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal weathered the initial spell with composure, setting a new record for an Indian opening partnership at Headingley. They looked largely untroubled, punishing loose deliveries with crisp off-side drives, and compiled a solid 91-run stand. The partnership was finally broken just moments before lunch when Brydon Carse induced an edge from KL Rahul (42), who had looked set for a half-century. The very next over, a moment of heartbreak for debutant Sai Sudharsan (0), who was strangled down the leg side by Ben Stokes, sending India to the lunch break with a sudden wobble at 92 for 2. However, any hopes of an English resurgence were emphatically quashed by a magnificent 129-run third-wicket partnership between Jaiswal and his new captain, Gill. Jaiswal, continuing his meteoric rise in Test cricket, was sublime. He played with controlled aggression and exquisite timing, becoming the first visiting batsman to score a century in his first Test in both Australia and England. He reached his fifth Test hundred, and third against England, off just 144 balls before Stokes produced a gem of a delivery to bowl him for a brilliant 101. If England thought that wicket would bring them respite, they were sorely mistaken. Shubman Gill, shouldering the responsibility of captaincy with aplomb, played an innings of sheer class and authority. He became the fifth Indian to score a century on his captaincy debut, a knock decorated with silken drives and confident pulls. Unbeaten on 127 at the close, Gill looked every bit the leader of this new-look Indian side. He was joined by the ever-dangerous Rishabh Pant, who provided the perfect late-session impetus. Pant overcame a cautious start to unleash his trademark attacking strokes, reaching his 16th Test fifty and passing 3,000 runs in the process. His unbeaten 65, compiled in an unbroken 138-run stand with Gill, hammered home India's advantage, leaving a weary England team with a mountain to climb. **Scoreboard: India 1st Innings (at Stumps, Day 1)** | Batsman | Dismissal | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR | | ----------------------- | --------------------------------- | ---- | ----- | -- | -- | ------ | | Yashasvi Jaiswal | b Ben Stokes | 101 | 158 | 16 | 1 | 63.92 | | KL Rahul | c Joe Root b Brydon Carse | 42 | 78 | 8 | 0 | 53.84 | | Sai Sudharsan | c Jamie Smith b Ben Stokes | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | | **Shubman Gill (c)** | **Not Out** | **127** | **175** | **16** | **1** | **72.57** | | **Rishabh Pant (wk)** | **Not Out** | **65** | **102** | **6** | **2** | **63.72** | | **Extras** | (b 1, lb 10, w 1, nb 7, p 5) | **24** | | | | | | **Total** | **(For 3 wickets; 85 overs)** | **359** | | | | | **Fall of Wickets:** 1-91 (KL Rahul, 24.5 ov), 2-92 (Sai Sudharsan, 25.4 ov), 3-221 (Yashasvi Jaiswal, 52.3 ov) **England Bowling** | Bowler | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Econ | | -------------- | ----- | ------- | ---- | ------- | ----- | | Chris Woakes | 19.0 | 2 | 89 | 0 | 4.68 | | Brydon Carse | 16.0 | 5 | 70 | 1 | 4.37 | | Josh Tongue | 16.0 | 0 | 75 | 0 | 4.68 | | Ben Stokes | 13.0 | 1 | 43 | 2 | 3.30 | | Shoaib Bashir | 21.0 | 4 | 66 | 0 | 3.14 | England's bowlers, barring Stokes, struggled for consistency on a pitch that offered far more for the batsmen than anticipated. With India's deep batting line-up still to come, the hosts face a monumental task to get back into this Test match on day two.