IND vs ENG: Broken but beautiful - How Shubman Gill got his century-hitting bat fixed before the first Test

Shubman Gill's Century at Headingley: A Tale of a Repaired Bat and a Captain's Innings

Shubman Gill made a remarkable start to his Test captaincy, scoring an unbeaten 127 on the first day of the match between India and England at Headingley Cricket Ground.

Shubman Gill (right) scored century at Headingley with a repaired bat. (Screengrabs)

Gill reached his century in the final session, joining the ranks of Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar, and Virat Kohli, as Indians who've scored centuries in their first Test as captain.

What makes this century even more remarkable is the fact that Gill scored it with a bat that had been damaged just before the Test match. During India's intra-squad match at Beckenham, Kent, he damaged one of his favorite bats. He then contacted Cricfix_batservices, a Kent-based company specializing in bat repairs.

The company shared a video on Instagram detailing the damage and the repair process. According to the shop's owner, Gill damaged the toe of the bat during a training session while trying to dig out a yorker.

The repair involved gluing the cracks and inserting a small wedge to flatten the damaged area. The bat was then lightly sanded to avoid affecting its "ping." At Gill's request, thread binding was applied to the toe for added strength, along with a fabric facing.

The company posted: "Here's the finished bat, looking brand new once again — toe repair all sorted. It was really cool to see him using it again in training the next day. I'm wishing him all the best for the series ahead."

A fan commented, "Looks like it's working out for him! 127*." The owner replied, "Not sure whether to be happy or not 😄."

India will resume Day 2 at 359 for 3. Vice-captain Rishabh Pant was batting on 65, giving Gill company when stumps were called.