No chill Gill: Just a run-glutton on the loose at Edgbaston

No Chill Gill: A Run-Glutton on the Loose at Edgbaston

Shubman Gill's batting has always been about time, and his 269 at Edgbaston deepened that relationship. He turned time into a tool, and the innings itself into something nearly timeless.

Gill was at the crease for 509 minutes, the longest the England team has had to bowl at any single batter. He batted like a royal: unhurried, assured, and immovable. England assistant coach Jeetan Patel summed it up: they threw everything at him, but nothing got past.

Gill's batting lexicon has always been about batting long. He kept batting serenely and found two left-handed partners in Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, who stuck with him long enough to stitch stands of 203 and 144 for the sixth and seventh wickets.

Gill's eight-and-a-half-hour vigil brought India substance, changing the familiar pattern of play that England has mastered. England fielded for as long as they did here, and it showed in their sluggish footwork and cloudy judgement.

Playing for a draw isn't in the Bazball playbook, but it could become a consideration. England is more than 500 runs behind, and with another Test looming quickly at Lord's, the aftertaste of Edgbaston's toil may linger longer than they'd like.

Gill batted like a run-glutton who knows exactly what he wants, and now, finally, how to wait for it. He pushed his Test average past 40, not in a blaze, but with quiet greed.