Following India’s narrow 22-run defeat to England in the third Test at Lord’s, captain Shubman Gill said he was extremely proud of the fight his team showed.

However, he admitted that just one fifty-run partnership could have changed the course of the game. Gill also rued Rishabh Pant’s run out in the first innings, saying it proved costly.

“We could have had a 70 to 80-run lead, and may not have had to chase nearly 200 on a tricky fifth-day track,” he said.

Ravindra Jadeja’s gritty unbeaten 61 off 181 balls went in vain as India, chasing 193, were bowled out for 170 in the final session of the match. At 112-8, Jadeja fought gamely with support from Jasprit Bumrah (5 off 54) and Mohammed Siraj (4 off 30), taking the contest deep in what turned out to be a classic Test finish.

India’s top order had collectively failed, and the visitors eventually fell short, handing England a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. The collapse was engineered by England’s pace trio – Jofra Archer (3/55), Ben Stokes (3/48), and Brydon Carse (2/30).

“Extremely proud. It was as close a Test match as it can get – played over five days and came down to the last session,” Gill said at the post-match interview.

“I was pretty confident of our chances with plenty of batting left. We needed a couple of 50-run partnerships but we weren’t able to get that.”