SHUBMAN GILL's unbeaten 101 anchored India’s chase as they secured a six-wicket victory over Bangladesh in their Champions Trophy opener in Dubai on Thursday.
Chasing 229 on a challenging pitch, India reached the target with 21 balls to spare, powered by Gill’s second consecutive ODI century.
"Definitely one of my most satisfying innings that I have played and my first century in ICC events," Gill said after being named man of the match. "Very happy with the way I performed."
Captain Rohit Sharma praised his opening partner, saying, "Gill, we know the class that he has. Shouldn't surprise anyone. It was good to see him bat till the end."
India, playing their matches at the Dubai International Stadium after refusing to tour host nation Pakistan due to political tensions, started their campaign with a strong performance.
Mohammed Shami led the bowling attack with figures of 5-53, reducing Bangladesh to 35-5 early on before they recovered to post 228 all out after electing to bat first.
Towhid Hridoy (100) and Jaker Ali (68) put on 154 runs for the sixth wicket, aided by dropped catches from India.
In response, India made a steady start with Rohit and Gill finding regular boundaries. Rohit reached 41 before being dismissed by Taskin Ahmed, becoming the 10th batsman—and fourth from India—to surpass 11,000 ODI runs.
Virat Kohli, greeted with loud cheers at a largely empty stadium, took 10 balls to get off the mark and made 22 before falling to Rishad Hossain. India lost Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer soon after, slipping to 144-4.
Gill, who was player of the series in India’s recent ODI sweep over England, remained composed and, alongside KL Rahul, guided India to victory with an unbeaten 87-run stand.
Rahul finished on 41 not out, benefiting from an early dropped catch, as Gill reached his eighth ODI century.
'Cost us the game'
"Losing five wickets in the powerplay cost us the game," Bangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto said.
"Hridoy and Jaker batted brilliantly but we still made mistakes on the field. Dropped catches and a few run-outs missed, the result could have been different."
Shami’s five-wicket haul was his sixth in 104 ODIs. With Jasprit Bumrah ruled out due to a back injury, Shami stepped up, becoming India’s leading wicket-taker in ICC ODI tournaments with 60 wickets.
He struck in the first over, dismissing Soumya Sarkar for a five-ball duck. Axar Patel then took two wickets in two balls, removing Tanzid Hasan (25) and Mushfiqur Rahim for a duck.
Rohit dropped a catch at first slip, denying Axar a hat-trick and giving Jaker a reprieve on nought. Jaker later survived another chance on 24 when Rahul missed a stumping, while Hridoy was dropped on 23 by Hardik Pandya.
Jaker fell to Shami, while Hridoy’s 118-ball knock ended after hitting six fours and two sixes.
India next face Pakistan on Sunday.
(With inputs from AFP)
