This morning sums up what this team is all about: Shubman Gill

London, Aug 4 (PTI) India, a team in transition, refused to give up every time they were pushed to the wall during the five-match Test series against England, including on a riveting final day at The Oval. That fighting spirit defines the team, said captain Shubman Gill on Monday.

It was a massive series for Gill and his team following the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, besides the absence senior player like Mohammed Shami. Even Jasprit Bumrah was not available for all games, forcing them to change the bowling combination in every game.

On day four of the final Test here, India looked down and out with Harry Brook and Joe Root keeping England on course for a record chase but Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna brought the visitors back from the dead.

Even on Monday morning, the odds were stacked against India but Gill and Co. managed to pull off a sensational victory to draw to series.

“What we did this morning, kind of summarises what this team is all about. 70 odd runs, 7 wickets in hand (on day four). The way Brook and Root were going, not many teams in the world would have given themselves a chance," said Gill.

“But this team believes that, whenever we have some kind of an opening, we can get through that opening. And that's what we were talking about once Brook was out, and then we got an early wicket of Bethell, that this is our opening, let's try to build pressure on them.

“But when you've got bowlers like Siraj, makes your job as a captain very easy. You're just standing out there, and you just want to appreciate their bowling,” the Indian captain said after the famous win.

There were ups and downs the whole series with both teams fighting tooth and nail. As the series went on, Gill grew as a batter and as captain.

“There are moments like these, where you feel the journey is worth it, the moment that we had in the morning. And there have been a lot of highs and lows, and that's kind of expected, especially with sports.

“Obviously, every game or every time you go into bat, you want to be able to perform, you want to be able to score a century. But unfortunately, that's not how the game or life works. You should be able to navigate through the highs and lows of life and try to stay balanced throughout.

“That's what at least I believe in, that I want to be able to stay balanced, whether we have won the match, lost the match, I've done well, or I've not done well,” said Gill.

With a staggering 754 runs, Gill led from the front in his debut series and silenced the critics who questioned his technique and record in SENA countries. He ended up with four hundreds, including a double.

Asked how he evolved as a batter, Gill had plenty to say.

“Each 100 that I scored had a very different significance,. The one in Leeds was my first match. I was under a bit of pressure, not being able to perform especially in this format how I wanted to, so that 100 would always be special for me. And then the double hundred and the 100 in Birmingham, to be able to seal that match was also special.

“And the one in Manchester, to be able to save that game from there. Each of them has a story, and each of them means a lot to me,” said the young skipper.

Gill spoke about the rationale behind placing all the fielders in the deep on day five with England nine wickets down and Gus Atkinson batting with Chris Woakes, who came out despite a broken arm and was in no position to bat.

“We thought that we still have the wicket-taking options on this wicket. If they want to make runs, they will have to hit boundaries. But rather let them have 30 singles and score those 30 runs, rather than score 5-6 boundaries.

“We knew that there was a lot of pressure on them. Whichever team is in that position, so there is always more pressure on the batting team. Because it's a one-ball game. So we thought that the longer we take the game, the more probability of taking the wicket,” Gill added. PTI BS PDS PDS