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Shubman Gill ensured India were in a strong position after their first innings, scoring a double century at Edgbaston on day two.
India captain Shubman Gill believes his hard work paid off after his record-breaking stand put his side in control on day two against England at Edgbaston.
The tourists stormed to 587 in their first innings, with Gill posting a mammoth score of 269, becoming the first India captain to score a double century in England.
It is also the third-highest score by any visiting captain against England in men's Test cricket, behind only Australia's Bob Simpson (311) and South Africa's Graeme Smith (277).
Gill's haul is also the highest by an Indian captain in Tests, surpassing Virat Kohli's unbeaten 254 against South Africa in Pune in 2014.
No India player has ever scored higher in Tests outside Asia. Sachin Tendulkar's 241 not out at the SCG in 2004 was the previous highest.
Gill kept the details of what he had worked on close to his chest, but was delighted with the confident start India made.
"I worked on a few things before the series that I thought might be important for me going into Test cricket. Looking at the results, they are working for me," he told Sky Sports.
"This game was all about confidence. We spoke about if we scored 400 again, batting first or batting second, we would be right in the game."
England, meanwhile, face a mammoth task after their top-order collapse meant they reached stumps at 77-3 on Thursday, trailing by 510 runs.
Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope were both taken for ducks inside the third over, while Zak Crawley only managed 19 before being caught.
"Spending 151 overs in the dirt in any scenario is pretty tough. There's some tired minds and tired bodies," said England assistant coach Jeetan Patel.
"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. They'll get a good night's rest."
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