Gill and Crawley were involved in a heated debate as India tried to cramp as many overs as possible in a seven-minute window towards the end of Day 3 in the third Test at Lord’s, which the visitors eventually lost by 22 runs.
Photo: IANS
Ending his silence over the heated on-field exchange with India skipper Shubman Gill during the Lord’s Test, England opener Zak Crawley clarified that he followed the process on his part and wasn’t aware that he was late by 90 seconds even as he felt the home side stands “a good chance” to rile the visitors after slamming 84 to lay the the foundations for England’s strong response in Manchester on Thursday.
Gill and Crawley were involved in a heated debate as India tried to cramp as many overs as possible in a seven-minute window towards the end of Day 3 in the third Test at Lord’s, which the visitors eventually lost by 22 runs.
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India’s ploy was to make England’s openers face at least two overs with the new ball under fading light in the hope of an early breakthrough, but the batters delayed proceedings, and only a single over from Jasprit Bumrah could be bowled. Crawley, who took a blow on the gloves from a Bumrah delivery and called for the physio, had also withdrawn from an earlier ball in the over.
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The Indian camp viewed it as deliberate time-wasting, prompting Gill to engage in a verbal exchange with the right-handed opener. Since then, Gill has broken his silence on the incident, accusing Crawley of time-wasting in his pre-match press conference ahead of the Manchester Test.
Clarifying about his aggressive behaviour, the Indian captain said while he is not proud of what happened, the on-field spat was a result of unnecessary delaying tactics by the England openers.
Refuting Gill’s claims, Crawley revealed that it was a misunderstanding and he wasn’t trying to break any rule as he was just following the umpires. “No, it wasn’t intentional. I sit in my spot until the umpires go out. I walked out when I saw them go. I wasn’t aware we were 90 seconds late, but fair enough,” Crawley said.
Enjoy that part of cricket: Crawley
Crawley further revealed that he enjoyed the verbal duel with Gill as he felt no one stepped over the line and it only reflected the competitive spirit between both sides. “I’ve always enjoyed that part of cricket, to be honest, especially when you’re batting. There’s two of you against eleven and they’re desperate to get you out, and they’re chirping you,” he said.
“Most of the time, I’d probably let it slide, and then other times, I feel like it’s a good chance to put it back on them. I loved that little eight-minute passage. No-one stepped over the line. I thought everyone was in good spirits. It was just competitive cricket, and I really enjoyed it,” he added.
Crawley also praised India vice captain Rishabh Pant for displaying the grit to come out to bat with a fractured toe on Day 2 of the fourth Test.
“Not many people in the world would be able to come out and bat like he did on one foot,” he said.
On Thursday, Crawley eventually fell to Ravindra Jadeja, well caught by KL Rahul at slip, after adding 166 for the first wicket with Ben Duckett. It was their fifth 100-plus stand as an opening pair and the second of the series, and Crawley said that he was more than happy to let Duckett, who made 94, be ‘the leader’ of their partnership.
“He’s a phenomenal player and he takes a lot of pressure off me. He scores at a run-a-ball effortlessly, and it allows you to go about your business. We talk a lot in the middle about how we want to go about it, and obviously our height difference – and being left-right-hand – probably makes it quite hard for the bowlers at times, when we’re both going well at either end,” Crawley said.
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