Gill repaid the faith of the team management with a timely hundred in the second Test.
This was Gill's third century in Test cricket and his first at the No. 3 position. Before this, the right-hander had not scored a single fifty at the one-down spot and questions were raised over his place in the side.
However, Shubman rose to the occasion when India needed him the most in their second innings. He slammed 104 off 147 balls with 11 fours and 2 sixes, propelling the hosts to 255 and helping them set a daunting target of 399 for the visitors.
In the fourth innings, England’s batting line-up capitulated to be bowled out for 292, giving India a series-levelling 106-run victory in the second Test.
After the game, India head coach Rahul Dravid admitted that Shubman Gill was under pressure externally, but within the team, the confidence level in the 24-year-old didn't dip.
Dravid further said that the quality of Gill is well-documented, pointing out the key knocks he played during the lean patch.
"He came into the Test match under pressure externally, internally we have a lot of confidence in Shubman. We know his class and his ability, We’ve seen it. We’ve seen how good a player he’s been,” Dravid said in the post-match presser.
“Even in this lean run. He’s the one who’s got us 100 at Chittagong. He got 100 in Ahmedabad. So we know that quality. But of course, I mean, as a young player from whom a lot is expected, I think he did feel the pressure. So happy with the way he played,” he added.
Having gained confidence from this knock, Shubman Gill will look to build on it in the remainder of the Test series against England.
The third Test is slated to get underway after an extended break on February 15 in Rajkot.