"Tough pill to swallow": Shastri delivers no-nonsense verdict on India's bitter defeat at Headingley

Leeds [UK], June 25 (ANI): Former head coach and cricketer Ravi Shastri believes the five-wicket defeat in the opening Test against England at Headingley will be a "tough pill to swallow" for India.
Under the watchful eye of head coach Gautam Gambhir, India ushered in a new era without its batting bigwigs Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Shubman Gill passed on the captaincy baton and the responsibility to lead India in this era, which began with a Test at Headingley.
The initial signs in the opening Test suggested a bright outing. With India bereft of its batting wizards, India tormented England for a good four days. However, several split-catching opportunities and twin tail-end collapse conspired against India in the decisive moment. England, which specialises in orchestrating successful chases, chased down a 371-run target to walk out with a 1-0 lead.
"This will be a tough pill for India to swallow. You don't get in positions like this very often, and blow it from there. They had a chance to take England out of the contest and dictate terms. They have to learn and they need more bottle from the tail, for them to be stubborn and put a price tag on their wicket," Shastri said on Sky Sports.
Even though India fell on the wrong side of the result, there were plenty of positives to take into the Birmingham Test next week. India had five centuries on its scoring charts, including Yashasvi Jaiswal (101), captain Gill (147), KL Rahul (137) and Rishabh Pant (134 and 118).
"There is a big role for the coaching staff to take the positives. As a captain, Gill has done more than can be asked of him. He got a hundred in his first Test in charge, and the dropped catches [and collapses] are not in his control," he added.
England's inspired 371-run pursuit was fuelled by Ben Dukett's flamboyant 149, Joe Root's collected 54* and Jamie Smith's 44* blitzkrieg helped the hosts trounce India in 82 overs. (ANI)