Shubman Gill provided a sense of calm amid a period of turmoil by making a significant contribution in India’s win in the first ODI against New Zealand in Vadodara on Sunday.
An innings of 56 from 71 balls opening the innings in the subcontinent while chasing 301 would generally not be something to write home about. Especially when Virat Kohli falls short of his 54th ODI century by just seven runs. But for Gill and the Indian team, it was a shot in the arm.
Over the last few months, Gill – who was the soon-to-be all format captain of the Indian team – saw the rug pulled from under his feet. Firstly, there was a spate of unfortunate injuries that kept him mostly out of the field – first a neck injury followed by a foot issue.
And just as he was biding his time on the recovery table, Gill found himself excluded from the squad for the home T20 World Cup which begins early next month. That was a crushing blow for Gill who by all counts had become the apple of the eye of the Indian cricket establishment and had all pathways cleared to take over as the undisputed leader of Indian cricket.
Turns out, not many were convinced with Gill to begin with. The 26-year-old batter had been included in a well-settled Indian team last season and the results were disastrous; Gill went 18 innings in T20 Internationals without a fifty. He was replaced by Sanju Samson in the World Cup squad.
According to reports, there was a faction in India’s selection group that was adamant on getting back to the earlier formula that had made the Indian T20 team one of the most feared and successful sides in international cricket.
So out went the misfiring Gill, especially since current T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav was himself struggling even more and the team could not afford two out-of-form top order batters.
That meant India’s ODI and Test captain was shown the door right before a World Cup. Enough to rock the confidence of even the best.
On the eve of the ODI series against the Kiwis, Gill answered questions about his T20 exclusion with composure. And he decided to let his bat do the talking as his fifty laid the foundation of a commanding win over New Zealand on Sunday.
Kohli shines again
While the focus of all white ball teams is on the upcoming T20 World Cup, there is the 50-over World Cup to think about as well, especially since teams play very few one-day contests nowadays.
On a flat batting wicket, New Zealand posted 300-8, with fifties from Henry Nichols, Devon Conway and Daryl Mitchell.
When it was the home team’s turn to bat, all eyes were on the evergreen Rohit Sharma, who opened the innings with Gill.
Following a cautious start, former captain Sharma tried to add some impetus to the innings before handing over to Gill and Kohli who put together a century stand.
Gill fell to young leg-spinner Adithya Ashok for a respectable 56 from 71 balls. Kohli, on the other hand, continued his sensational form, marching towards a century in the company of the equally impressive Shreyas Iyer (49 from 47).
But India’s tormentor Kyle Jamieson once again put a spanner in the works. He dismissed Kohli and Iyer short of their milestones, leaving the lower order to get the team past the finish line.
Kohli made 93 from 91 balls with eight fours and a maximum, showing once again he is the king of the 50-over chase and locked in for the 2027 showpiece event.
India reached the target with four wickets and one over in hand. Fast bowler Harshit Rana followed his two-wicket haul with a quick 29 from 23 balls to steer the chase. KL Rahul (29 not out) finished the game with three successive boundaries.
