The final day began with high hopes for India, defending a formidable 371-run target on a wearing Leeds pitch. But what followed was an utterly dominant display of opening batting from Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett, who neutralized the threat of Jasprit Bumrah and co with skill and confidence. The duo raced to a century stand inside 25 overs, scoring at over four an over, and denying India even a sniff of a breakthrough. As England marched past 100 without loss, the pressure visibly mounted on debutant captain Shubman Gill. At Lunch, England needed just 254 more runs with all wickets intact, well on track for a historic chase.
Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett masterclass leaves India clueless
Duckett and Crawley orchestrated a batting clinic, treating the morning session like a limited-overs run chase. Duckett, aggressive and innovative, brought up a blistering fifty off just 66 balls, threading boundaries behind point and past mid-on with surgical precision. Crawley played the anchor, nudging singles and punishing anything too full. The pair complemented each other perfectly, putting on 100 runs in less than 25 overs without taking undue risks.
Their footwork against Ravindra Jadeja was decisive, never allowing the left-arm spinner to settle. The pace bowlers rotated with little effect, Mohammed Siraj was wayward, Prasidh Krishan expensive and Shardul Thakur largely ineffective. Even Bumrah, India’s best weapon, couldn’t extract life from the pitch. With a slow outfield and quick hands, England’s openers kept the scoreboard ticking and the pressure firmly on the hosts. England’s positive intent and shot selection proved just how much batting-friendly the conditions still were, even on Day 5.
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Shubman Gill’s leadership under fire as strategy fails
As England steadily closed in on their target, questions mounted over Gill’s captaincy in his very first Test leading India. Critics and viewers alike pointed out his reactive field placements, allowing singles freely and not applying pressure when England were cruising. Despite India having a sizeable cushion, Gill’s unwillingness to try unconventional fields or bring back Bumrah in short bursts left fans fuming. His handling of Jadeja was also puzzling, used in short spells and without attacking fields. If Gill was trolled for his tactics, the Indian bowlers were hammered for their execution. Bumrah looked tired and under bowled, Siraj was erratic, Krishna leaked boundaries and Shardul was largely ineffective. The consensus was clear, India weren’t just being outplayed, they were being out-thought and out-fought. The bowling lacked venom, and fans were in no mood to spare anyone.
Here’s how fans reacted:
Very very poor captaincy from Shubman Gill just like 1st inning, he allowed opposition to score 460+ in 1st inning when conditions were overcast.
And now when England is chasing big 371, still Gill is playing with cery defensive field. Virat would be hating all this at home.
— Rajiv (@Rajiv1841) June 24, 2025
Session is coming close to the end Crawley and Duckett are still there and smashing Indian bowlers. Neither the change in bowling, field placements nor shouting from the fielders has worked for India.
— Sports syncs (@moiz_sports) June 24, 2025
What’s frustrating is that I don’t feel confident watching this bowling attack. Earlier, even if the situation looked bad, I’d still think India had a shot. But not with this current setup. Baki jaisa Gill bol rha “Ek side Mohammad dusre side Krishna” wahi bachaye inhe ab 🙂↕️
— Jahazi (@Oye_Jahazi) June 24, 2025
Just began watching the cricket
Terrible bowling by India, wrong lines and lengths, not even bowling to the field 😲
— Apurv Nagpal (@apurvnagpal) June 24, 2025
This game at Headingly is slipping away.. better bowling by india support bowlers than the first dig, but even better batting by England.. Thisnis one ground where the runs per wicket grows from the first to the fourth innings!!
— PRAKASH WAKANKAR (@pakwakankar) June 24, 2025
Bumrah gonna choke again today.
— . (@chixxreturns) June 24, 2025
Why isn’t Jadeja bowling? Why is Thakur bowling? Prasidh Krishna manages to go at 5.75 runs an over on a 5th-day pitch. Absolutely brainless captaincy.
— कुशल मेहरा (@kushal_mehra) June 24, 2025
Shardul and Prasidh bowling like the 6th and 7th bowlers who have to complete 4 overs in a T20 because one of the frontline bowlers broke down.
— Gaurav Sethi (@BoredCricket) June 24, 2025
Why are mediocre players like Prasidh Krishna even selected for the test team when we have bowlers like Arshdeep Singh in the pipeline? #INDvsENG
— Animesh Singh (@animeshingh_) June 24, 2025
Ball at one place challenge, feat. Prasidh Krishna.
— Gurkirat Singh Gill (@gurkiratsgill) June 24, 2025
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