ENG vs IND: Coach Gautam Gambhir joins India squad in Leeds ahead of first Test

India's preparations for the upcoming five-match Test series against England have received a timely boost, with head coach Gautam Gambhir rejoining the squad in Leeds. Gambhir was back at Headingley on June 18, overseeing the team's training sessions alongside his coaching staff as they gear up for the series opener beginning June 20.Gambhir had returned to India on June 11 following a medical emergency involving his mother, who had been hospitalised after a heart attack. As a result, he missed the team's three-day warm-up fixture in Beckenham, which featured both the senior Test squad and the India A contingent. His mother's condition has since improved, allowing the coach to reunite with the team just two days before the first Test.advertisementIn his absence, the training responsibilities were handled by assistant coaches Ryan ten Doeschate and Sitanshu Kotak, with bowling coach Morne Morkel also playing a key role. They were given added support by India A coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar and VVS Laxman, who was also in England as part of the A team's setup.
This series will mark the beginning of India's World Test Championship (WTC) 2025–27 campaign, and expectations are high from the new leadership duo—head coach Gambhir and captain Shubman Gill. The team will be looking to bounce back after recent disappointments, including a home series loss to New Zealand and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy defeat against Australia.Despite their strong 4-1 Test series win over England earlier this year at home, the upcoming away challenge presents a different test altogether. Both sides will be keen to make a strong start to the new WTC cycle, adding further weight to the Leeds opener.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Mint

16 minutes ago

• Mint

'It is my desire, my will to do well': Jaiswal opens up on his mindset while batting

Leeds [UK], June 21 (ANI): Following his maiden ton in England on Friday, Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal opened up and revealed his mindset and temperament while batting in the middle during the game. The left-hand batter played an exceptional innings of 101 runs off 159 balls, laced with 16 boundaries and a maximum in his innings. Speaking on his mindset while batting, Jaiswal said in a video posted by BCCI, "It is my desire, my will to do well. Whenever I come here, these things stay in my mind. I want to do well for my team and my country. I enjoy practising alone and preparing. I keep trying that every ball that I play will help me in difficult situations. Further, the 23-year-old player spoke about the intra-squad game between India and India A which was played at Beckenham, Kent's second home venue, where he faced right-arm seamers Jasprit Bumrah and Harshit Rana. "There are many moments when we are under pressure. I enjoy the moments that I like. For example, we played in Beckenham. Rana was bowling very well. Bumrah was also bowling very well. I was not able to run, but I was playing well. That thing gave me so much confidence. It gives me so much belief that I will play well. I will take out that time. I enjoyed playing and it was good," the southpaw added. The young cricketer joined former Indian skipper, Saurav Ganguly (131 at Lord's, 1996), Vijay Manjrekar (133 at Leeds, 1952), Sandeep Patil (129* at Manchester, 1982) and Murali Vijay (146 at Nottingham, 2014) to score Test ton in their first Test innings on English soil. Jaiswal achieved this feat in his outing against England on Day 1 of the first test of the five-test match series on Friday at Leeds Headingley. This is also the start of the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle for both nations. Among players who have played at least five Tests and scored at least 500 runs against England, Jaiswal has the highest average. In six Tests, he has scored 813 runs across 10 innings at an average of 90.33, with three centuries and fifties each. He is the seventh Indian batter to score a century at Headingley. This century of Jaiswal is the fifth of his test career, and it is worth noting that none of his five tons have come against Asian nations. Notably, he has slammed a century on his maiden Test outings in Australia, the West Indies, and England. Three of his centuries have come against England, and one each against Australia and the West Indies. Jaiswal was dismissed by England skipper Ben Stokes right after Tea on Day 1 for 101 runs, his innings included 16 fours and a six. (ANI)

NDTV

18 minutes ago

• NDTV

"Was Getting Cramps On Both Hands": Yashasvi Jaiswal After Scoring Historic Test Ton vs England

Yashasvi Jaiswal was overjoyed after making his maiden hundred in England, and the Indian opener gave a slice of credit to skipper Shubman Gill for maintaining a calm atmosphere at the other end during their partnership. Jaiswal and Gill, who also made an unbeaten century, added 129 runs for the third wicket stand to take India to 221 from a shaky 92 for two after the first session. India navigated through the second session without losing a wicket. "Whenever I make a century, wherever it is, I enjoy it. I love it as all my centuries are special. But of course, there are some special (century in England)," Jaiswal said in the post-day press meet. The left-hander also threw light into how he and Gill took their alliance forward. "We were speaking a lot in the middle and we were trying to take it session by session and try and get as many runs as possible. "There was an amazing camaraderie between us. It was amazing to bat with him (Gill) and the way he batted, calm and composed, I enjoyed it a lot and it was helping me," he added. The ton on Friday was his third three-figure mark in overseas tours after fetching centuries in the West Indies and Australia. So what was his personal strategy during his hundred? "The strategy was to put away the bad balls, time and place the shots well. I was just thinking about handling the situation, where the England team was keeping fielders or in which areas they were bowling. "I was just trying to bat accordingly. I was batting as per the needs of the team," he said. Jaiswal, similar to many of his teammates, came into the Leeds Test without too much practice in red-ball cricket, courtesy the two-month IPL season. But the 23-year-old said switching the formats mentally was important for him. "Challenges will always be there in cricket, just that it will be different in different stages. I was trying to trust my process and mindset and was trying to express myself. "To switch mentally is very important as in how you think or in which environment you are in. It helps you to enjoy the game when you are playing under pressure," he noted. However, Jaiswal admitted that the practice games for India A against the England Lions and the intra-squad match against the senior side was helpful in understanding the local conditions. "I was getting cramps on both hands. Our preparations were good while playing for India A and at Beckenham (intra-squad). We were discussing about playing a long innings after getting a start. "We got a lot of inputs from Gautam sir. So, it was nice to come to such a nice ground and perform," he added.

India Today

21 minutes ago

• India Today

Rishabh Pant goes past Dhoni, becomes Asia's most successful Test wicketkeeper in SENA

Rishabh Pant achieved a major milestone on Friday at Headingley, becoming the most successful Asian wicketkeeper-batter in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) countries. The 26-year-old went past MS Dhoni during his unbeaten 65 on Day 1 of the first Test against England—both countries' opening fixture of the 2025–27 World Test Championship also crossed 3,000 runs in Test cricket during the knock, becoming only the second Indian wicketkeeper after Dhoni to achieve the feat. He reached the landmark in just his 76th innings, the second-fastest among wicketkeeper-batters in Test history behind Australia's Adam Gilchrist, who got there in 63 vs IND 1st Test Day 1 Highlights Pant now has 1,746 runs in SENA countries from 27 matches at an average of 38.80, including four centuries and six fifties. In doing so, he moved past Dhoni's tally of 1,731 runs in 32 matches, becoming the highest-scoring Asian wicketkeeper-batter in these for his counterattacking style, Pant displayed maturity and control in Leeds. His 102-ball 65, featuring six fours and two sixes, came in an unbroken 138-run partnership with captain Shubman Gill as India closed the day with a dominant 359 for 3 — their highest-ever first-day total in a Test match on English Yashasvi Jaiswal set the tone with a fluent 101 off 159 deliveries, striking 16 boundaries and a six. Gill followed with a composed, unbeaten 127 in his first outing as Test captain, anchoring the innings with authority and Rahul also chipped in with a solid 48 before falling just before lunch, with India reaching the break at 92 for 2. Despite heading into the match under overcast skies and on a surface that traditionally assists seamers early, England's decision to bowl first Stokes removed debutant Sai Sudharsan for a duck on the stroke of lunch, but that was England's last moment of control. Jaiswal and Gill steadied the innings post-lunch, with the left-hander bringing up his fifth Test hundred and the skipper stamping his authority with a classy ton of his the five-match series off to a fiery start, India's strong showing on Day 1 — powered by centuries from Jaiswal and Gill, and a milestone knock from Pant — firmly put the visitors in control at Headingley. You May Also Like