"It has happened both at Headingley and here" - Aakash Chopra questions Shubman Gill's captaincy in ENG vs IND 2025 2nd Test

Former India player Aakash Chopra has questioned Shubman Gill's captaincy in the second Test against England. He noted that the Indian skipper went defensive too early despite the visitors having the upper hand in the game, highlighting that the same tactical mistake has been committed in the first two Tests.

India allowed England to post 407 in their first innings in the second Test in Birmingham after reducing them to 84/5 at one stage. The visitors ended Day 3 (Friday, July 4) at 64/1, with a lead of 244 runs.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener highlighted that Gill fell into England's trap by becoming defensive once Harry Brook (158 off 234) and Jamie Smith (184* off 207) started attacking.

"When the third day started, Mohammed Siraj first dismissed Joe Root and then Ben Stokes. You had the chance to bury them in the ground. Bazball's approach is to attack the opposition. So they started attacking, whether it was Harry Brook or Jamie Smith. Their thought process is that if it comes off, the opposition would do what they want, and that's exactly how it played out," Chopra said (6:20).

"As soon as they attacked, you spread the field a little and tried to set up a bouncer trap. 23 went in one over, and Prasidh Krishna was very expensive. They started attacking, and we went on the defensive. You conceded 172 runs in a session that you started with two wickets. You have got your tactics wrong. Shubman Gill needs to be spoken about as it has happened both at Headingley and here. He was seen following the ball a little," he added.

Aakash Chopra acknowledged that Shubman Gill is a young captain and will learn the tricks of the trade. However, he noted that India's tactics, especially in the first session, were slightly baffling, considering they didn't have attacking fields despite having a massive lead.

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"It's our obsession with all-rounders" - Aakash Chopra on India's other Achilles heel on Day 3 of ENG vs IND 2025 2nd Test

Washington Sundar went wicketless in England's first innings. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that Washington Sundar (0/73 in 14 overs), Ravindra Jadeja (0/70 in 17 overs) and Nitish Kumar Reddy's (0/29 in six overs) inability to pick up wickets, apart from Prasidh Krishna's expensive spells, also proved to be India's stumbling blocks.

"Another of India's Achilles heels needs to be spoken about. I have already spoken about Prasidh Krishna. It's our obsession with all-rounders. Washington Sundar played and scored runs as well, but what happened in the end? He, Jaddu and Nitish Kumar Reddy didn't take any wickets," he said (9:30).

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the Indian bowling attack's potency cannot be judged just by the game's result.

"Reddy bowled only six overs. Jaddu and Washington Sundar went wicketless, and runs were being scored easily. We didn't play bowling to take 20 wickets. We might actually end up winning this game, there is no doubt that we are ahead in the game, but it will be a travesty if our opinion is based only on the result," Chopra observed.

To conclude, Aakash Chopra opined that India missed Kuldeep Yadav a lot in the first innings. He expressed hope that Shubman Gill and company don't miss an attacking spinner in the second innings.