Shubman Gill's record-breaking 269 puts India in control at Edgbaston

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — India backed up Shubman Gill's phenomenal 269 with three cheap England wickets on a dream day of test cricket for the visitors at Edgbaston on Thursday.

After Gill's 8 1/2-hour innings led India to 587 all out — its highest score in England in 35 years — pacers Akash Deep and Mohammed Siraj found life in a seemingly lifeless pitch to reduce England to 25-3 with three edges into the slips cordon.

By stumps on day two, Harry Brook and Joe Root rebuilt England to 77-3, trailing India by 510 runs on the first innings.

Brook was 30 not out and Root 18 not out, but the day was dominated by Gill, the new India captain who calmly binged on a flat pitch to smash India test records.

England was knackered, understandable after sending the Indians into bat first then needing 151 overs and more than five sessions to bowl them out.

“Spending 151 overs in the dirt in any scenario is pretty tough. There's some tired minds and tired bodies,” England assistant coach Jeetan Patel said.

“You put in that much effort and it's not just physical, it's mental as well. Credit to Shubman for the way he's batted over two days, it was a masterclass in how to bat on a good wicket. The guys threw everything at them, and rightly so, but they're very tired for their efforts.”

Gill took on the biggest load, responding to losing the first test in Leeds last week by taking on the responsibility of giving India a chance to tie the series.

He resumed the day on 114, back-to-back centuries in the series, and cruised through the morning and afternoon and never giving England a chance.

India was 310-5 overnight, he and Ravindra Jadeja saving them from 211-5. They extended their partnership on a serene morning to 203 until just before lunch when Jadeja, on 89, tried to fend off a Josh Tongue short ball that reared up, and gloved it to the wicketkeeper.

India's tail was a weakness in Leeds but bowling allrounder Washington Sundar, brought in to help the batting, supported his skipper with 42 in a stand of 144. It ended just before tea when Sundar's middle stump was hit by Root.

Gill went to tea on day two still looking as fresh and unfazed as he did when he first walked out to the middle just before lunch on day one.

Day one for Gill was about saving India. Day two was about turning a big score into a position of authority. It came with records.

On 148 he passed his previous best test score of 147 in Leeds last week.

On 180, he had the highest test score by an India captain in England, eclipsing Mohammad Azharuddin's 179 in 1990 at Old Trafford.

On 200, he became the seventh visiting captain to a test double century in England. He got there with a single to fine leg to his 311th ball faced, and his reaction was ecstatic, capped by a customary bow.

He'd upped his tempo as the day got older. The first 100 came off 199 balls, the second 100 off 112.

On 222, he had the highest score by an India player in England, passing Sunil Gavaskar's 221 in 1979 at the Oval.

On 236, he had the second highest score by an Indian against England.

He reached 250 from 348 balls with his 29th boundary.

On 255, he grabbed the highest test score by an India captain, passing Virat Kohli's 254 in 2019 against South Africa.

Gill came out of tea on 265 and reached 269, his highest first-class score, when his knock came to a tame end. He paddled a short ball by Tongue straight to Ollie Pope at square leg.

His 269 off 387 balls, including 30 boundaries and three sixes, earned him a couple of handshakes from England players and a standing ovation from Edgbaston's crowd.

England took the last two wickets in about a half-hour, spinner Shoaib Bashir leading the bowlers with 3-167 from 45 overs.

Without its premier bowler Jasprit Bumrah — rested for the match — India's attack had question marks. But Bumrah's replacement, Akash Deep, silenced them in his second over when he dismissed first test centurions Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope for ducks in successive balls.

Siraj then knocked out Zak Crawley on 19 at 25-3.

Siraj almost had Harry Brook, too, but the batter survived a close lbw appeal on 1. Brook had another life in the last over, when he chopped on against Prasidh Krishna and shouldered the ball off the stumps that he almost then stepped on.

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India's Mohammed Siraj, right, celebrates after the dismissal of England's Zak Crawley on day two of the second cricket test match between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham, England, Thursday, July 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

India's captain Shubman Gill plays a shot on day two of the second cricket test match between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham, England, Thursday, July 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

India's Ravindra Jadeja plays a shot on day two of the second cricket test match between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham, England, Thursday, July 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

India's Washington Sundar bats on day two of the second cricket test match between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham, England, Thursday, July 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

India's captain Shubman Gill celebrates after scoring a double century on day two of the second cricket test match between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham, England, Thursday, July 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

India's captain Shubman Gill celebrates after scoring a double century on day two of the second cricket test match between England and India at Edgbaston in Birmingham, England, Thursday, July 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Bills fans arrived early and lingered long after the game ended to bid what could be farewell to their long-time home stadium filled with 53 years of memories — and often piles of snow.

After singing along together to The Killers' “Mr. Brightside” in the closing minutes of a 35-8 victory against the New York Jets, most everyone in the crowd of 70,944 remained in their seats to bask in the glow of fireworks as Louis Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World” played over the stadium speakers.

Several players stopped in the end zone to watch a retrospective video, with the Buffalo-based Goo Goo Dolls’ “Iris” as the soundtrack while fans recorded selfie videos of the celebratory scene. Offensive lineman Alec Anderson even jumped into the crowd to pose for pictures before leaving the field.

With the Bills (12-5), the AFC's 6th seed, opening the playoffs at Jacksonville in the wild-card round next week, there's but a slim chance they'll play at their old home again. Next season, Buffalo is set to move into its new $1.2 billion facility being built across the street.

The farewell game evoked “a lifetime of memories,” said Therese Forton-Barnes, selected the team’s Fan of the Year, before the Bills kicked of their regular-season finale. “In our culture that we know and love, we can bond together from that experience. Our love for this team, our love for this city, have branched from those roots.”

Forton-Barnes, a past president of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame, attended Bills games as a child at the old War Memorial Stadium in downtown Buffalo, colloquially known as “The Rockpile.” She has been a season ticket holder since Jim Kelly joined the Bills in 1986 at what was then Rich Stadium, later renamed for the team’s founding owner Ralph Wilson, and then corporate sponsors New Era and Highmark.

“I’ve been to over 350 games,” she said. “Today we’re here to cherish and celebrate the past, present and future. We have so many memories that you can’t erase at Rich Stadium, The Ralph, and now Highmark. Forever we will hold these memories when we move across the street.”

There was a celebratory mood to the day, with fans arriving early. Cars lined Abbott Road some 90 minutes before the stadium lots opened for a game the Bills rested most of their starters, with a brisk wind blowing in off of nearby Lake Erie and with temperatures dipping into the low 20s.

And most were in their seats when Bills owner Terry Pegula thanked fans and stadium workers in a pregame address.

With Buffalo leading 21-0 at halftime, many fans stayed in their seats as Kelly and fellow Pro Football Hall of Famer Andre Reed addressed them from the field, and the team played a video message from 100-year-old Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy.

“The fans have been unbelievable,” said Jack Hofstetter, a ticket-taker since the stadium opened in 1973 who was presented with Super Bowl tickets before Sunday’s game by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield. “I was a kid making 8 bucks a game back in those days. I got to see all the sports, ushering in the stadium and taking tickets later on. All the memories, it’s been fantastic.”

Bud Light commemorated the stadium finale and Bills fan culture with the release of a special-edition beer brewed with melted snow shoveled out of the stadium earlier this season.

In what has become a winter tradition at the stadium, fans were hired to clear the stands after a lake-effect storm dropped more than a foot of snow on the region this week.

The few remaining shovelers were still present clearing the pathways and end zone stands of snow some five hours before kickoff. The new stadium won’t require as many shovelers, with the field heated and with more than two-thirds of the 60,000-plus seats covered by a curved roof overhang.

Fears of fans rushing the field were abated with large contingent of security personnel and backed by New York State troopers began lining the field during the final 2-minute warning.

Fans stayed in the stands, singing along to the music, with many lingering to take one last glimpse inside the stadium where the scoreboard broadcast one last message:

“Thank You, Bills Mafia.”

AP Sports Writer John Wawrow contributed.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Fans watch a ceremony after the Buffalo Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

Buffalo Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White (27) remains on the field to watch a tribute video after the Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y.(AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

Fans watch a ceremony after the Buffalo Bills beat the New York Jets in the Bills' final regular-season NFL football home game in Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

Fans celebrate after the Buffalo Bills scored a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Fans celebrate and throw snow in the stands after an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Aga Deters, right, and her husband Fred Deters, walk near Highmark Stadium before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Michael Wygant shoves snow from a tunnel before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Alec Anderson (70) spikes the ball after running back Ty Johnson scored a touchdown against the New York Jets in the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

FILE - The existing Highmark Stadium, foreground, frames the construction on the new Highmark Stadium, upper right, which is scheduled to open with the 2026 season, shown before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots, Oct. 5, 2025, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

Salt crew member Jim Earl sprinkles salt in the upper deck before an NFL football game between the Buffalo Bills and the New York Jets at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)