Jaiswal, Gill with milestone tons on India's commanding day
The Indian pair rose to the occasion with maiden tons in England as India assumed control on the opening day in Headingley.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill scored prolific tons to shoulder India’s batting push against England on the opening day of the five-match ICC World Test Championship series.
Being put in to bat first by the home captain Ben Stokes, the duo scored their maiden tons in England to help India to 359/3 at Stumps.
Jaiswal, who is playing his first Test in England, set a unique record en route to a special ton. The left-hander became the first Indian batter to score a century in his first ever Test in both England and Australia.
Back in November 2024, Jaiswal had scored an emphatic 161 in his first Test in Australia to inspire India’s famous win in Perth.
Shouldering a lot of expectations going into his maiden tour of England, the opener meticulously crafted his fifth Test hundred at Leeds.
Having gotten India off to a smooth start in the first session - adding 91 runs for the opening wicket with KL Rahul - Jaiswal went on to compile 101 runs off 159 deliveries. The innings included a whooping 16 fours and one maximum.
It was Jaiswal’s third century against England. His previous two had come in 2024, when the southpaw plundered a stunning 712 runs from the five-Test series at home - becoming only the second Indian batter to score more than 700 runs in one Test series.
Accompanying him among the runs from the other end was Shubman Gill, who marked his first innings as India’s Test captain in style.
Gill, who scored his sixth Test ton, became only the fifth Indian batter to score a century in his first Test as captain.
Century in first Test as Indian captain
| Player | Opposition | Venue (Year) |
|---|---|---|
| Vijay Hazare | England | Delhi (1951) |
| Sunil Gavaskar | New Zealand | Auckland (1976) |
| Dilip Vengsarkar | West Indies | Delhi (1987) |
| Virat Kohli | Australia | Adelaide (2014) |
| Shubman Gill | England | Leeds (2025) |
The 25-year-old joined the exclusive club featuring Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar and Virat Kohli.
The Indian skipper closed the day unbeaten at 127 off 175 deliveries, a knock laced with an equivalent 16 boundaries and one six as Jaiswal's.
Alongside him in the middle, Rishabh Pant remained unbeaten at 65 off 102 deliveries, as India laid the foundation to set up a commanding first-innings total.