India Clinches Series 3-0: Gill’s Century and Dominant Bowling Shine Against England

Ahmedabad, Feb 12 (NationPress) Opener Shubman Gill showcased his brilliance with a stunning 112, complemented by robust half-centuries from Shreyas Iyer (78) and Virat Kohli (52), leading India to a formidable 356 in the third and final ODI against England. This impressive total was insurmountable for the visitors, who were dismissed for 214, resulting in a decisive 142-run victory for India and a clean sweep of the series, 3-0.

Gill has been exceptional throughout the series, earning the title of player of the series with a total of 259 runs across the three matches, averaging 86.33.

England's captain Jos Buttler won his third consecutive toss and chose to field first. However, this decision quickly proved detrimental as India's top order, aside from Rohit Sharma, excelled.

Rohit fell for a mere 1 due to a brilliant delivery from Mark Wood, which edged to Phil Salt. Despite this early loss, Gill and Kohli stabilized the innings.

The duo forged a partnership of 116 runs, initially playing cautiously, rotating the strike to build a solid base. Kohli, who faced a tense run-out situation in the seventh over, survived and soon regained his rhythm, hitting Saqib Mahmood for back-to-back boundaries. By the end of the powerplay, India was at 52/1. The partnership thrived as they began targeting England’s bowlers, with Joe Root conceding five boundaries in his first two overs, and Liam Livingstone also faced the brunt as both Gill and Kohli launched sixes against him.

Kohli reached his half-century off 50 balls, while Gill followed suit in 51 deliveries. Just when it appeared they were on track for significant scores, Kohli was dismissed by Adil Rashid, edging one to the keeper after a commendable innings of 52.

Shreyas Iyer came in and executed an aggressive counterattack alongside Gill, amassing 104 runs for the third wicket. Gill celebrated his century in 95 balls, marking his first ODI century since September 2023, before falling to Rashid while attempting a sweep shot, ending his outstanding innings at 112.

Despite losing a few quick wickets, including Iyer, who was dismissed by Rashid for 78, India’s lower order continued to score. K.L. Rahul (40), Axar Patel (13), and Washington Sundar (14) contributed quick runs. Hardik Pandya added some late fireworks, hitting Rashid for back-to-back sixes before being dismissed. India ultimately reached 356 all out in their 50 overs.

England’s chase began with a strong opening partnership between Ben Duckett (34) and Phil Salt (23), who quickly amassed over 50 runs together. However, Duckett's wicket at the hands of Arshdeep Singh, followed by a series of dismissals, stifled England’s progress. Tom Banton (38) and Joe Root (24) attempted to stabilize the innings but soon fell prey to the Indian spinners.

Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Harshit Rana, and Arshdeep Singh each took two wickets. Despite a valiant 38 from Gus Atkinson, who hit six boundaries and one six at a strike rate of 200, the target was too high. England's lower order faltered, with India closing the innings at 214, sealing a 142-run victory in just 34.1 overs.

This win completed India's dominant 3-0 series sweep, highlighted by an outstanding batting performance and disciplined bowling, while England's inconsistent batting raises concerns ahead of the 2025 Champions Trophy.

Brief scores:

India 356 all out in 50 overs (Shubman Gill 112, Shreyas Iyer 78, Virat Kohli 52, K.L Rahul 40; Adil Rashid 4-64, Mark Wood 2-45) beat England 214 all out in 34.2 overs (Ben Duckett 34, Tom Baton 38, Gus Atkinson 38; Axar Patel 2-22, Arshdeep Singh 2-33, Harshit Rana 2-31, Hardik Pandya 2-38) by 142 runs.