Shubman Gill hits 62nd century, continues his scorching ODI form with back-to-back hundreds

Captain Shubman Gill continued his red-hot ODI form with a second consecutive century as he hit his 11th hundred in the format off just 62 balls during India’s mammoth chase against the West Indies in the second ODI in Guwahati on Wednesday.

Gill reached the milestone by cutting Alzarri Joseph over leg for four. He removed his helmet, raised his bat towards the stands and was soon embraced by Rohit Sharma, who had played the role of aggressor earlier in the innings.

However, the celebration was relatively subdued. Chasing a daunting 406 after the West Indies posted their highest ever ODI total, Gill knew the job was far from done.

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The century was Gill’s second in as many innings after his hundred in the first ODI. It also extended his streak of consecutive ODI centuries to three, making him one of India’s most prolific batsmen in the format for subsequent hundreds.

AB de Villiers holds the record with four consecutive ODI centuries for India from 2010 to 2011, while Virat Kohli also managed four from 2017 to 2018. Gill’s last hundred took it to three in a row.

Gill started the chase cautiously, allowing Rohit to attack the West Indian bowlers. But once he settled in, the Indian skipper kicked into gear and started finding the boundary with increasing regularity.

The opening pair complemented each other well, with one batsman taking command whenever the other tried to turn the strike around. Their partnership kept India ahead of the required pace and gave the hosts hope of a record chase.

The target was set after West Indies produced a stunning batting display earlier in the day. John Campbell provided the initial attack, smashing a 65-ball century before finishing with 101 off 68 deliveries. The left-hander hit nine fours and five sixes as he repeatedly put India’s inexperienced pace attack under pressure.

Shai Hope then combined control with aggression to score 104 off 94 balls, while Amir Jangoo launched another onslaught in the closing stages. Jangoo reached his second ODI century from just 69 balls and finished unbeaten on 114, with 13 fours and three sixes.

It was the first time West Indies had three centurions in an ODI innings, while their 405 for seven surpassed their previous highest ODI total of 389 against England in 2019.

India’s bowling attack struggled to keep West Indies on a level playing field in Guwahati.

Auqib Nabi, who became the third cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to represent India, endured a tough debut conceding 84 runs in 8.5 overs. Gurnoor Brar was the most successful of the returning pacers, taking two wickets but conceding 96 runs.

Prasidh Krishna took one wicket for 45 runs in his five overs. India also suffered an injury scare when Naman Dhir twisted his ankle after bowling 6.1 overs and was forced off the field.

The spinners offered India some control, with Kuldeep Yadav taking two wickets for 65 runs to complete 200 ODI wickets. Ravindra Jadeja also claimed two wickets to finish with figures of 2/75.

With Jasprit Bumrah on Asian Games duty and Mohammed Siraj still unavailable, India’s inexperienced fast attack had few answers to West Indies’ aggressive batting.

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