Gill loses temper as England run down the clock
England accused Gill of hypocrisy after he took issue with their time-wasting tactics in a dramatic final over
Matt Roller12-Jul-2025
Shubman Gill and Zak Crawley were involved in a heated exchange•Getty Images
England accused India’s captain Shubman Gill of hypocrisy after he took issue with their time-wasting tactics in a dramatic final over on the third day at Lord’s.Gill, who spent several minutes lying down and receiving treatment during India’s fielding innings on the second day, appeared to tell Zak Crawley to “grow some f***ing balls” after he twice pulled out while Jasprit Bumrah was running into bowl the first over of England’s second innings, which started around six minutes before the close of play.Crawley called for treatment two balls later when he was struck on the glove, prompting several India fielders to walk towards him while clapping sarcastically. Both Gill and Crawley pointed fingers at one another in a heated exchange and Tim Southee, England’s bowling coach, suggested that Gill had no right to complain about time-wasting.
Always annoying when you can't get another over in before close pic.twitter.com/3Goknoe2n5
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 12, 2025
“It’s always exciting to see both sides animated towards the end,” Southee said. “I’m not sure what they were complaining about when Shubman Gill was lying down getting a massage in the middle of the day yesterday. It’s obviously part of the game [when] you’re near the end of the day. It’s an exciting way to finish the day.”England successfully wasted enough time to ensure that they faced a single over on the third evening, much to India’s frustration. “We wanted to bowl two overs,” KL Rahul said. “There were six minutes left. It is a no-brainer that any team will bowl two overs with six minutes to go, but it was a bit of theatrics at the end.”Related
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Rahul said that India were already “pumped up” even before Crawley’s time-wasting, sensing an opportunity for a late wicket. “We know how difficult it is for a batter to come to bat for two overs when you’ve been in the field all day,” he said. “A wicket at the end of the day’s play would’ve been perfect for us. Tomorrow, even without that, I think we would’ve been fired up anyway.”He also said that England’s time-wasting was understandable in the circumstances. “What happened at the end is just part of the game now,” Rahul said. “I understand from an opening batter’s point of view. I know exactly what was going on, and everyone knows exactly what was going on. But an opening batter will understand completely what happened in the last five minutes.”Southee dead-panned that Crawley would be “assessed overnight” after being hit and said that the final over showed the “energy” of the series. “Both sides have played some good cricket and in a good spirit, and tonight was just a bit of energy towards the end of the day,” he said. “It’s been a long three days, and it was good to see the energy still there from both sides.”He also defended the slow over-rate across the first three days, with 32 overs lost already. “It’s never ideal, I don’t think, but it’s obviously been hot so there’s been probably more drinks than usual,” Southee said. “There’s been a number of stoppages with the ball also, and DRS takes its time… But yeah, to lose that much, it’s probably at the extreme level.”