“Kamboj wasn’t in the squad a week ago” – Former England captain slams Shubman Gill’s captaincy on Day 2 of 4th ENG vs IND 2025 Test

Former England captain Nasser Hussain slammed Indian captain Shubman Gill for preferring debutant Anshul Kamboj over the experienced Mohammed Siraj with the new ball on Day 2 of the fourth Test at Manchester. The visitors extended their first innings with the bat to the middle of the second session, before being bowled out for a formidable 358.

The total seemed above-par, given the swing and seam movement on offer for the England bowlers on the second day. However, Gill made a surprising decision to open the bowling with Kamboj, alongside Jasprit Bumrah.

The youngster conceded 12 runs off his first over to set a poor tone for India’s new-ball bowling. England raced to 77/0 in 14 overs at tea on the second day, putting the visitors on the back foot.

Talking about India’s bowling and Gill’s surprising decision to hand Kamboj the new ball at the tea break, Hussain told Sky Sports:

“They bowled really poorly. Change in overhead conditions doesn’t make you bowl both sides of the wicket. Too many balls on the pads, not enough in that channel. Captain’s decisions I didn’t quite agree with, to be honest. Kamboj wasn’t in the squad a week ago. He wasn’t in the team. To bring him into the squad, bring him into the team and give him the new ball ahead of Siraj seems odd.”

He added:

“I would have gone Siraj for a short burst that end and then switch him to this end to follow Bumrah. So, everything that could possibly go wrong in 14 overs has.”

Siraj was India’s leading wicket-taker in the series coming into the Manchester outing, with 13 wickets. However, he got his first bowl of the innings in the seventh over after England had raced away to 34/0.

“Rishabh Pant has gone out there on one leg” – Nasser Hussain

Nasser Hussain further slammed the Indian bowlers for wasting Rishabh Pant’s batting efforts earlier in the day with an injury. The Indian wicketkeeper suffered a toe injury late on the opening day, forcing him to retire hurt.

Despite being ruled out of the series finale with a fractured toe, a hobbled Pant came out to bat at the fall of the sixth wicket. He added 17 valuable runs to his overnight score of 37, finishing with 54 off 75 deliveries.

“Rishabh Pant has gone out there on one leg and got valuable runs today in partnership with others. They have just handed those runs back to England. You have to say, England, with the way they bat do put opposition bowlers under pressure by showing intent,” said Hussain (via the aforementioned source).

England have continued their dominance with the bat in the post-tea session, moving to 109/0 in 21 overs.

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback

About the author

Venkatesh has been writing cricket news, listicle and feature articles for Sportskeeda for over a year. He loves cricket because of the diversity of the playing fields and its unparalleled nuances, which no other sport presents. He also enjoys the analytical and quantitative side of the sport, which originates from his MBA degree and 10 years of experience in the IT industry in companies like Infosys, Atos and TCS.

Venkatesh ensures proper research from reliable sources and social media trends to gather information, and adds his own dash of creativity to create insightful content.

He started watching cricket in the late 1990s, having been impressed with South Africa and New Zealand’s gentleman-like attitude. Domestically, he supports the Chennai Super Kings for their ability to bring the best out of their players owing to a friendly and conducive team environment.

He admires three cricketers the most – Brian Lara for his batting style, AB de Villiers for changing the paradigm of batting and MS Dhoni for his unique cerebral approach to field placings and batting. Along with cricket, Venkatesh also enjoys watching and playing tennis and basketball. In his free time, he finds pleasure in singing and watching movies and web series.

Know More