VVS Laxman's special gesture allows Vaibhav Suryavanshi and his U19 teammates to witness Shubman Gill's historic knock

India U19 players, who are currently on a tour of England, were in the stands as Shubman Gill scored a stunning 269 off 387 balls in the ongoing 2nd Test at Edgbaston. Gill achieved the milestone on Day 2 of the match on Thursday, and the young U19 cricketers got lucky to watch him live from the stadium.

VVS Laxman’s role in India U19 players getting to watch Shubman Gill’s knock

The India U19 team, led by coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar, is in England for five Youth ODIs and two Youth Tests. Kanitkar revealed in a video posted by the BCCI that it was National Cricket Academy (NCA) head VVS Laxman who arranged for the boys to watch the senior team’s Test match at Edgbaston.

“VVS Laxman was instrumental in arranging this. He was the one who actually said that it would be a good thing to go and watch this game. It’s definitely a special occasion for any upcoming cricketer to be at a Test venue,” Kanitkar said.

Future watching the present 👌

India U19's Day Out at Edgbaston! 😊#TeamIndia | #ENGvINDhttps://t.co/sceeygwmhb

— BCCI (@BCCI) July 4, 2025

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The day turned out to be a successful one for India. Gill was in top form, sharing a massive 203-run partnership with Ravindra Jadeja, who scored a solid 89. He later stitched another 144-run stand with Washington Sundar. Thanks to Gill’s knock, India posted a huge total of 587 in the first innings.

By the end of Day 2, India had already removed three English batters, putting themselves in a commanding position. On Day 3, the momentum continued as Mohammed Siraj struck early, dismissing Joe Root and Ben Stokes in the same over. But a big partnership between Harry Brook and Jamie Smith brought England back into the game .

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They put on a 303-run stand for the sixth wicket and helped the hosts score 407 runs. India then scored 64/1 in their second innings and currently lead by 244 runs. KL Rahul and Karun Nair will resume India’s innings on Day 4. India will look to post a target of over 400 before declaring the innings.

India are 1-0 down in the series after having lost the first Test at Headingley. They will be hungry to win this one and level the contest before the Lord’s Test.