IT WAS just the first glimpse of the Indian batting story at Headingley but the signals coming from the Leeds Test against England are heartwarming. The batting lineup, led by young Shubman Gill, has told the world that India’s next line is equally prepared for the rigours of international cricket, even in away conditions. The solid show by India in the first innings at Leeds has put to rest all the anxieties cropping up after the retirement of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Now, there is positive vibe around the young team, regardless of the result of the match or the series. And, it is a gain Indian cricket was looking for from the England tour.

 

Just a month after the twin retirements shook India’s batting calculations in Test cricket, the youngsters’ solid show against England has instilled a renewed confidence in Gill’s team. The captain led from the front with a solid century, his deputy Rishabh Pant complemented with a swashbuckling ton but before that it was the free-flowing Yashasvi Jaiswal who actually injected dollops of pride in the team and its fans by standing up to a new challenge of facing English seamers in typical overcast English conditions. After the long five-Test series, whichever way it tilts in the end, the opening act by Jaiswal and K L Rahul needs to be recounted for the grit the duo displayed right at the start of a high-pressure series. Apart from Gill, who is set to be under intense scrutiny as India’s captain, the pressure was on the openers to make a statement of intent. More often than not it is the first strike by a team or an individual that decides the end result of a game or a series. Jaiswal and Rahul rose to the occasion like seasoned professionals, never bothering about the pitch, the bowlers or hype around the series.

 

The opening stand they built gave tremendous confidence in the next batters which was visible in the positive attitude the line-up displayed throughout the innings. This first strike can help India find a way out of the pressure of performance if analysed and studied from the angle of mental freedom. The first Test at Leeds has handed India a strong belief to stand up as worthy competitors. Not that the team is a second-string side playing against a mighty opponent. It has some world-class performers like Jasprit Bumrah, Rahul, Pant, Ravindra Jadeja and Gill himself. Yet, the sudden vacuum created by Kohli and Rohit’s retirement had created an air of vulnerability around the mix of talented and young players. By trading a fantastic opening punch, Indian batters have shown that the depth of reserves is something to be proud of by fans of Indian cricket. The story ahead on the long tour needs the same intensity and momentum to translate the belief into a champion’s confidence. It will need more characters and their own tales to add to the overall script which holds immense potential of becoming a blockbuster.