Shubman Gill finally breaks silence on fight with Zak Crawley, England’s ugly sledging at Lord’s

India National Cricket Team captain Shubman Gill has finally opened up on the heated spats and vicious sledging during the Lord's Test against the England National Cricket Team.

Shubman Gill said that such banters make a game more 'exciting and challenging' and the incidents that happened at Lord's in London during the third Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy are part and parcel of sport.

Tempers flared between India and England players at Lord's

The ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy hit its peak during the Lord's Test when the players of the teams decided to leave behind their calm demeanors and engage in heated spats.

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After very peaceful yet thrilling first two Tests, England and India players had a go at each other during the third Test match. It all started on Day 3 during the last 10 minutes of the play.

Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett arrived in the middle during the end stages with a single aim in mind to play just one over. They adopted some time-wasting tactics to ensure that they achieved their goal, and this didn't sit well with India.

India skipper Shubman Gill was furious, and he was seen telling Zak Crawley to "grow some f***ing balls" after he twice pulled out while facing Jasprit Bumrah, and moments later, when the English opener was struck on the glove, several Indian fielders walked towards him while clapping sarcastically.

Both Gill and Crawley pointed fingers at one another in a heated exchange, and the Indian captain even made the 'impact player' gesture to mock the English batter.

From thereon, things only kept getting uglier as Mohammed Siraj gave a fiery send-off to Ben Duckett on Day 4 and even received punishment from the ICC.

On the fifth day, Jofra Archer brutally sledged Nitish Kumar Reddy and gave send-offs to Rishabh Pant and Washington Sundar. Harry Brook and Ben Stokes also sledged Reddy, which eventually resulted in the youngster crumbling under pressure.

I mean, you are giving everything - Shubman Gill

Speaking to the media after the match, Shubman Gill played down the fiery contests and said that there is a lot of admiration between the two teams.

“I mean, you are giving everything. Mentally, physically, you are giving your everything, and there would be times when there would be a little bit of heat from both sides. I think this is what makes it more exciting and challenging. The next time we play each other, we know there won't be anything easy,” Gill told reporters.

“At the end of the day, there is a lot of admiration between the two teams. Both teams are trying their best to win the match and perform. There can be moments when there can be some heat. You are just trying to give your best, it can happen in a game of cricket, but this is what makes it so exciting,” he added.

Also Read: Shoaib Bashir RULED OUT of cricket after shattering billions of Indian hearts in Lord’s Test

Both teams are playing hard - Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill was further questioned whether the Ben Stokes-led England took the sledging from the Indian players to heart and whether this resulted in the Three Lions going on all-out war in the last innings.

Responding to this, Gill came up with a mature statement, saying that England were just trying their best to win like India by giving it all, and such things make a game more exciting.

“This is what makes it more exciting. Both teams are playing hard, trying their best to win the match. Moments like these make the series more interesting,” said Gill.

India suffered a 22-run loss in the third Test match against England to go down 2-1 in the five-match series, and the fourth match will start on July 23 at Old Trafford, Manchester.