"Would England Have Walked Off...": Gautam Gambhir's Blunt Take On 'Handshake' Row
'If someone's batting on 90 and another on 85, don't they deserve their centuries? Would England have walked off if their own players were close to milestones? No. Our boys weathered the storm. They earned those tons. We're not here to please anyone,' Gambhir said at the post-match press conference.
Meanwhile, Gill lauded the batting effort of his side after salvaging a draw in the fourth Test against England and backed the decision to not accept Ben Stokes' offer to end the game early, saying Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar deserved to complete their centuries.
India, who started their second innings 311 runs behind, produced a spirited batting display to finish on 425 for four in 143 overs, with Gill (103), KL Rahul (90), Jadeja (107 not out) and Washington (101 not out) leading the resistance.
There was a brief moment of drama in the final hour when England skipper Stokes proposed ending the contest early, with both Indian batters approaching individual milestones. But the offer was turned down, allowing Jadeja and Washington to reach their hundreds.
'Definitely it was up to the boys, but we thought they batted brilliantly. Both of them were in their 90s, so we thought they deserved a century,' Gill said at the post-match presentation.
India were reduced to 0 for two early in their second innings after openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan fell without scoring, but the middle-order stood firm under pressure.
"With our batting effort, the past couple of days I think we were put under a lot of pressure. But I think the way we responded, especially after losing those two early wickets, never easy but a very brave effort," Gill said.
"It's all about taking the wicket out of the equation. Day five wicket, the ball is doing, something is happening, every ball is kind of an event. So you just want to play ball by ball and want to take the game as deep as possible."
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