Shubman Gill’s socks woes! Here is why ICC may sanction Indian skipper

India’s new Test skipper Shubman Gill could not have asked for a better start to both his captaincy stint and the five-Test series against England.

Having been put into bat after losing the toss in the first Test at Headingley in Leeds, India put up a dominant 359/3 on day 1. Indian openers Yashasvi Jaiswal (101) and KL Rahul (42) started the day strongly, before Gill (127*) and vice-captain Rishabh Pant (65*) steered India to a strong position at stumps after a slight wobble when the visitors lost Rahul and debutant Sai Sudharsan (0) just before lunch.

Day 2, too, seems to be going in visitors’ favour so far, with the duo continuing solidly from where they left off yesterday, and India crossing the 400-run mark. Gill is already in elite company, becoming only the fifth Indian to score a century on captaincy debut – the others being Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar, and Virat Kohli.

Did Shubman Gill breach ICC’s dress code regulations?

Apart from Gill’s glorious strokes around the ground, what caught everybody’s eyes was the colour of his socks. The 25-year-old was seen wearing black socks on day 1, a departure from the usual white socks that’s worn by players in Test cricket.

It could amount to a violation of the ICC’s Clothing and Equipment Rules, which came into effect in May 2023, and could attract disciplinary action.

According to clause 19.45 of the ICC’s Clothing and Equipment Rules, which follow guidelines set by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), players are only permitted to wear socks of colours "white, cream, or light grey".

What sanction might Shubman Gill face from ICC for black socks?

It will be up to the match referee Richie Richardson to determine whether it was a deliberate Level 1 offence. If found guilty, Gill could be fined 10-20 per cent of his match fees.

But, if the match referee determines the breach was accidental, Gill might avoid a penalty.