Former wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik reckons Indian skipper Shubman Gill took his relationship with Sai Sudharsan for granted when he was run-out after scoring 21 runs on the opening day of the fifth Test match against England at the Kennington Oval, London.
Gill was looking confident at the crease but he made a mistake in judging a single. The right-hander set off for a quick run on the bowling of Gus Atkinson but didn’t realise that he had hit the ball closer to the bowler.
This was the first time in the series when Gill went past the 20-run mark but didn’t get a hundred. The Oval pitch has all the help for the bowlers as it has a green tinge of grass on it and thus Gill’s wicket was a gift for the home team.
Gill and Sudharsan share a great chemistry with each other as they opened together while playing for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025.
“Sometimes, when you are very comfortable with a person that you have batted a lot with, you subconsciously do things that you generally would not otherwise with other batters. I felt his relationship with Sai Sudharsan on the pitch is one such relationship where they have just run so many singles. He almost feels he can call without calling,” Dinesh Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
“This one, I felt that the run was non-existent. I think Sai Sudharsan, in his defence, called quite early, and straightaway said no. But Gill had committed to the run a bit too much, and that is why he could not go back. He was feeling so bad, they showed it once, he was saddened, very disappointed. He almost went desolate saying, ‘You know what, I think I made a mistake here’,” he added.
On the other hand, Karthik showered praise on Karun Nair for playing a gritty knock of 52 on a tricky wicket. Nair batted at his absolute best despite India losing regular wickets at the other end.
“Today was not about playing good-looking shots; today was about being out there, leaving a lot of balls, and playing lesser shots than what you would do on a flat pitch, which he actually did. He really found a way to dig deep internally. I have a lot of time for players who do so well in domestic cricket and fight themselves into a spot, I am very happy to see him do well,” Dinesh Karthik said.
India ended the day’s play at 204-6 after they were put into bat.
