India produced a scintillating all-round display to secure their first-ever Test victory at Edgbaston, thrashing England by 336 runs on the final day of the second match to level the five-Test series at 1–1.
Gill’s Bat, Deep’s Ball: The Twin Pillars
Led by captain Shubman Gill’s masterful 161 in 162 deliveries, India first piled up 587 in response to England’s 407. Gill, just 25 years and 301 days old, became the youngest Indian skipper to win a Test overseas—surpassing Sunil Gavaskar’s 1976 Auckland record—while breaking a host of batting milestones along the way.
Fast bowler Akash Deep then seized the headlines with a career-best 6 for 99 in England’s second innings, following his first-innings haul of 4 for 88. Deep’s ten-wicket match haul was the decisive blow, skittling the hosts for 271 as India defended a monumental target of 608.
Resuming at 72/3, England needed 536 more runs but found themselves reeling within the first session. Akash Deep struck early, dismissing overnight batters Ollie Pope (24) and Harry Brook (23) in quick succession to reduce the home side to 83/5. A brief recovery by Jamie Smith (88) and Chris Woakes (7) faltered under relentless Indian pressure, as wickets tumbled to Deep, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar.
Smith’s heroic counter-attack—featuring nine fours and four sixes—was the only significant stand, yet even his defiance could not prevent England’s collapse. Jadeja claimed a key scalp when he removed Josh Tongue, and Deep wrapped up the innings by having Brydon Carse caught by Gill.
England’s first innings had offered hope after a terrifying spell from Siraj and Deep reduced them to 84/5. However, two devastating spells—Siraj’s 6/70 and Deep’s 4/88—rattled the tail, running through the last five wickets for just 20 runs.
India’s response was built on 80-run and 110-run partnerships between Yashasvi Jaiswal (87) & Karun Nair (31) and Gill & Rishabh Pant (65), respectively, before Gill’s two mammoth stands—203 with Ravindra Jadeja (89) and a further 175 with Jadeja again—propelled India to a 180-run lead.
Historic Win Seals Series Levelling
By winning by 336 runs, India not only ended a seven-match winless run at Edgbaston (seven losses and a draw) but also secured their largest away Test victory by runs—surpassing the 318-run win over the West Indies in 2016. Jasprit Bumrah’s five-wicket haul in that match and Ajinkya Rahane’s Player-of-the-Match twin centuries then pale only in historical comparison to the heroics of Gill and Deep here.
As the series moves to Lord’s for the third Test starting July 17, India will be buoyed by the confidence that comes from rewriting Edgbaston history. England, meanwhile, must regroup and repair a bowling unit that struggled to contain India’s relentless assault across five days.
Key Figures
- India 1st innings: 587 (Gill 269, Jadeja 89; Bashir 3/167)
- England 1st innings: 407 (Brook 158, Smith 184*; Siraj 6/70, Deep 4/88)
- India 2nd innings: 427/6 declared (Gill 161, Jadeja 69*; Woakes 2/93, Tongue 2/119)
- England 2nd innings: 271 (Smith 88, Carse 38; Deep 6/99, Siraj 1/?)
Player of the Match: Shubman Gill (269, 161 & captaincy)
With the series finely poised, cricket fans can hardly wait for the next chapter in this gripping India–England battle.
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