Published on: Feb 21, 2025 10:42 am IST|Updated on: Feb 21, 2025 10:42 am IST
Shubman Gill’s unbeaten century helped India kick off their Champions Trophy campaign with a solid six-wicket win over Bangladesh in Dubai. India, the only team playing in Dubai while the rest of the tournament takes place in Pakistan, chased down 229 with 21 balls to spare.
Mohammed Shami was on fire with the ball, picking up 5-53 as Bangladesh was bowled out for 228. It looked like an early collapse when they slipped to 35-5 in the ninth over, but Towhid Hridoy’s first international century gave them something to fight for.
Gill anchored the chase with his eighth ODI hundred, finishing unbeaten on 101 off 129 balls. He smashed nine fours and two sixes and stitched together key partnerships—69 runs with Rohit Sharma and 87 with KL Rahul. Rahul stayed not out on 41 and finished the game in style with a six.
“Gill, we know the class he has. What he showed us, it shouldn’t surprise anyone. What was good to see was he was there till the end,” Sharma said.
Bangladesh won the toss and decided to bat first, but things went south pretty fast. Shami struck in the first over to remove Soumya Sarkar, and Harshit Rana got skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto in the next over. Shami kept the pressure on, dismissing Mehidy Hasan Miraz in the seventh over.
Bangladesh was in deep trouble when Tanzid Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim fell back-to-back to Axar Patel in the ninth over. He almost had a hat-trick, which would have been just the second in Champions Trophy history.
A lifeline came when Rohit Sharma dropped a simple catch, giving Jaker Ali another chance. He made it count, putting up a 154-run stand with Hridoy. Ali eventually fell for 68, caught at long-on off Shami, who also grabbed his 200th ODI wicket. Hridoy carried on to reach his hundred off 118 balls with six boundaries and two sixes before Bangladesh was bowled out in the 49th over.
“The first powerplay, the way we batted, the game cost us at that point,” Shanto admitted. “Very hard for the lower order to recover. We were 25 to 30 runs short. The way Hridoy and Jaker batted was brilliant.”
Shami’s five-for was backed up by Rana’s 3-31 and Patel’s 2-43. India’s chase started strong with Sharma setting the pace early. He fell for 32 in the 10th over, and Virat Kohli added 22 before getting out to Rishad Hossain’s leg spin. A brief wobble saw India at 144-4, but Gill and Rahul steadied things.
Gill reached his century in 125 balls, making it the slowest ODI hundred for India in six years, but his calm approach ensured there were no hiccups. Rahul played it safe at the other end, and the two saw the game through comfortably.
India now gears up for a big clash against Pakistan on Sunday in Dubai, while Bangladesh faces New Zealand in Rawalpindi on Monday.
Tags: ICC