Major updates from Shubman Gill's press conference ahead of ENG vs IND fifth Test

Shubman Gill and India prepare to walk off with a 2-2 drawn series result if they potentially win the fifth Test of the five-match series against England at the Kennington Oval in South London. The home side will be without their captain, Ben Stokes, and several vital players who have been given a break after two long days in the field at Old Trafford. 

Gill didn’t speak much on whether Jasprit Bumrah, their premier pacer, would feature in the series decider. He reckoned that the final decision would be taken on the morning of the game, which begins on July 31 in 2025. ‘We will make a decision (on Bumrah) tomorrow; the wicket looks very green. So we will see how it turns out.’ He added. England leaving out their frontine spinner could work in India's selector of Kuldeep Yadav. 

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‘Arshdeep Singh has been asked to get ready, but we will take a call on the Playing XI after looking at the pitch by this evening. England haven't gone with a frontline spinner. We have Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, who have done such a good job with the ball and the bat. On that front, it's a no-brainer for us.’ The Punjab-born highlighted.

Shubman Gill gives major update on India’s playing XI before ENG vs IND 5th Test against England

All five games of the series have rolled into the fifth and final scheduled day. Despite being physically and mentally challenging, it’s a learning chapter for the young Indian captain, who has enjoyed his time with the bat, having scored over 700 runs in the first four clashes. He felt drawing the series would be a commendable achievement for them.

‘2-2 will be very significant for this team. In every match we have played, it was difficult to decide the winner after the first four days. The series has been a great learning curve. Some things you can learn from experience, hopefully finish on a high.’ Gill shed light in the press conference.

‘As far as I remember, we never had any instructions before about maintaining a 2.5 m distance from the pitch. I don't know what the fuss was all about yesterday.’ Gill concluded on the pitch controversy between head coach Gautam Gambhir and the Surrey curator, Lee Fortis, who had a heated argument two days before the start of the clash.