Team India hit the nets at The Oval under the watchful eye of head coach Gautam Gambhir, two days before the start of the fifth and final Test, set to begin on July 31. However, a heated moment drew attention when Gambhir got into a tense exchange with a member of the groundstaff.
Visibly agitated, Gambhir was seen pointing his finger at the Oval curator and was heard saying, “You don’t tell me what I should do.”
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, who was nearby, stepped in to defuse the situation and was later seen offering an explanation to the ECB’s head of security.
Since it was an optional practice session, many first-choice players, including captain Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj, were not present.
Gambhir offered tips to Sudharsan
Sai Sudharsan, who scored a fifty and a duck in his second Test, was among the early arrivals. The left-hander focused on throwdowns, particularly on improving his technique while leaving short balls — a response to his second-innings dismissal at Old Trafford. Head coach Gautam Gambhir closely monitored Sudharsan, offering technical advice on shoulder positioning during pull shots and correcting his head alignment.
Narayan Jagadeesan, who recently joined the squad as a replacement for Rishabh Pant, also took throwdowns. Meanwhile, Dhruv Jurel was spotted doing wicketkeeping drills with fielding coach T. Dilip before heading to the nets for a batting session — a likely sign that he will take Pant’s place in the XI.
Pacer Akash Deep, who missed the previous Test due to injury, bowled with the new ball and looked fully fit. He was joined by Arshdeep Singh, another returnee from injury.
Bowling coach Morne Morkel was seen in a long discussion with Prasidh Krishna, who impressed in the nets against Sudharsan. Kuldeep Yadav, a strong contender for the series decider, continued to look sharp during his spells and particularly against Sudharsan.
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