Cricket: India ease to six wicket victory over Bangladesh
India 231-4 (46.3 overs) Bangladesh 228 (49.4 overs)
Shubman Gill produced a classy, unbeaten century after Mohammed Shami’s superb 5-53 set the stage for India’s comfortable six-wicket win over Bangladesh in their Champions Trophy opener.
Chasing a modest 229, Gill anchored the innings with a composed 101 off 129 balls, guiding India home with 3.3 overs to spare.
India dominated from the outset in Dubai, reducing Bangladesh to 35-5 inside nine overs. Shami struck twice early, while Axar Patel’s double-wicket burst had the Tigers reeling. A slip-up from Rohit Sharma, who dropped a straightforward chance at slip, denied Patel a hat-trick.
Bangladesh clawed their way back thanks to a gritty 154-run stand between Tawhid Hridoy and Jaker Ali. Their partnership, which lasted 34 overs, initially crawled along before shifting gears once both batters passed fifty.
Click here for more sporting news from Super News Affiliate
Shami eventually broke through, removing Jaker for 68 and becoming the fastest bowler to 200 ODI wickets in terms of balls bowled. He went on to complete his sixth five-wicket haul in the format. Hridoy, meanwhile, reached a hard-earned maiden ODI century from 114 balls before being dismissed as the final wicket with two balls left in the innings.
India’s chase began in explosive fashion, with Rohit smashing a quickfire 41. Gill settled in quickly, steering the 2013 champions into a dominant position.
Bangladesh fought back in the middle overs and nearly found a breakthrough when Jaker spilled a chance to dismiss KL Rahul—had it been taken, India would have been five down with 64 still to get.
But Gill remained untroubled, blending elegance with composure to ensure India never looked in danger. The 25-year-old eased to his eighth ODI century, and it was Rahul who finished things in style, launching a six over deep backward square to seal the win.
Comments
Post a Comment