Breaking down Gill’s masterclass—the safest ton ever recorded

Statistically speaking, it was the safest Test century ever recorded in England.

On day one of the second Test at Edgbaston, rookie India captain Shubman Gill stood up to England despite the surrounding commotion and the setback of a punch-to-the-stomach loss in Leeds the week prior.

The hosts will have chosen to “have a chase” after winning the toss and realizing that this series is the time for them to extend their lead.

However, Gill’s regulated 114 not out in Birmingham improved on a few modern-day greats and helped his side finish with a respectable 310-5.

“The way he is batting has been incredible to see,” said team-mate Yashasvi Jaiswal, who shared a stand of 66 with his captain.

“He knows exactly what he needs to do.”

So, what actions did Gill take, then?

Given how confused Gill must have been after leaving Edgbaston on Tuesday, he might have been excused for it.

At his pre-game news conference, he answered a barrage of questions about his team choices for this week, with the majority of the inquiries focusing on if Jasprit Bumrah, his star bowler, would participate.

Gill had trouble satisfying the huge and persistent group of journalists traveling with India. The message was confusing. His performance in Birmingham 24 hours later, however, was not.

Before the series, Gill had discussed wanting to separate his captaincy from his batting. He then strolled to the middle and performed an innings with a low 3.5% deception rate. In England, the average is 12%.

Since analysts CricViz began collecting such data in 2006, it has been the most regulated ton on these coasts.

Using the same yardstick, England’s famous run-getters like Kevin Pietersen, Joe Root, and Sir Alastair Cook were never subject to the same level of control. Not to mention modern-day greats like Kumar Sangakkara, Ricky Ponting, and Rahul Dravid, who have all hit magnificent hundreds on these beaches over the past 20 years.

Only two outside edges off Chris Woakes were in Gill’s innings, both occurring before he reached 20, and an inside edge to Brydon Carse that prevented an lbw review from England.

Ben Stokes had two more missed or errant shots, while Woakes had three more. In all other respects, it was the closest anyone has come to perfection in England in recent years.

On his first day at Edgbaston, the pitch was the second simplest on record—the first was in 2017 against the West Indies, in case you were curious—but Gill countered with the most collected of strokes.

The leader of India was not going to be prevented by England from lifting his bat and performing the well-known bow in celebration.

Gill’s strategy for overcoming the challenges of English weather

Despite concerns about the 25-year-old’s track record abroad, Gill was chosen as the Test captain in May.

He averaged 14.66 runs in six innings in England, but as captain, he scored 147 in his debut innings in the first test at Headingley while batting at number four, farther away from the new-ball movement.

When Gill made his Test debut, India’s coach Ravi Shastri told Sky Sports, “He has worked on his defense.”

“The last time he was in England, he struck at the ball with hard hands. He now lets the ball strike the bat. He has faith in his defenses.

The middle demonstrated that confidence. His worst attempts saw him take 125 throws to get to 50 and 199 to get to 100.

Following his victory at Headingley, it was evident what England’s strategy was against Gill: the pace bowlers aimed at the pads, and their lines were the straightest they have ever bowled at a batter in the past 16 years.

Woakes stated, “It felt like we were close to getting him lbw where he got a little inside edge.”

“It felt like he had complete control over everything else. Give him credit.

“He played very well. It’s a huge hundred for his side and a really good one.”

Steve Smith has been England’s worst tormentor in the CricViz era, but not even the best Australia team has ever produced a century as well-controlled as Gill’s.

His lowest percentage of false shots in any of his eight Test centuries in England was 9%, which is far more than a few pieces of sandpaper.

Former England opener Sam Robson, who scored 127 in his second Test against Sri Lanka at Headingley in 2014, produced the best performance ever from an unexpected source.

Jacques Kallis, the outstanding South African all-rounder, scored the highest by an international player, with a score of only 4.4% in his legendary 182 not out at the Oval in 2012.