Shubman Gill’s brilliant unbeaten century and Mohammed Shami’s impressive 5-53 helped India start their Champions Trophy campaign with a comfortable six-wicket win over Bangladesh.
Chasing a modest target of 229, Gill anchored the innings with a composed 101 off 129 balls, leading India to victory with 3.3 overs to spare.
India’s bowlers dominated early in the game, reducing Bangladesh to 35-5 by the ninth over. Shami claimed two quick wickets, and Axar Patel followed up with two in two deliveries. However, captain Rohit Sharma dropped a catch at slip, denying Patel a hat-trick.
Bangladesh’s recovery was led by a resilient 154-run partnership between Tawhid Hridoy and Jaker Ali, who stayed together for 34 overs. Both batters reached half-centuries before accelerating their scoring. Shami eventually dismissed Jaker for 68, becoming the fastest bowler to 200 ODI wickets. He then wrapped up his five-wicket haul as Hridoy brought up his maiden century before being the final wicket to fall with two balls left in the innings.
India’s chase began with Rohit scoring a quick 41 to give the innings momentum. Gill played steadily, and though Bangladesh fought back in the middle overs, Jaker’s dropped catch of KL Rahul proved costly. At that point, India still needed 64 runs, but Gill’s calm, stylish batting ensured there was no panic.
The 25-year-old reached his eighth ODI century with ease, and Rahul finished the match in style, smashing a six over deep backward square to seal the win.
