As he set a pre-series goal of batting at least 40 overs and finishing matches, India’s skipper and opener Shubman Gill said on Wednesday that he was aiming for a double hundred in the second ODI against Afghanistan.
In the second ODI, India defeated Afghanistan by a commanding 170 runs to end the series. Gill overcame extreme heat and cramping to deliver a brilliant 154, and the increasingly self-assured Ishan Kishan struck a spectacular century.
“Yes, I was, but I knew that I’ll have to keep hitting my shots, keep 430, 440, 450 in mind. Honestly, in a pretty good space. The ball is going exactly where I want it to go and I’m feeling very confident from the first ball. Even in this match, in the series actually, I had a target for myself that I want to be there, finish matches and bat till 40-45 overs and build that habit, whenever I get a start, I want to convert those into big ones,” PTI quoted Gill as saying at the post-match presentation when asked if he was eyeing a double hundred.
Gill, who was also named player of the match, was dismissed for 154 off 110 balls, which included two sixes and 22 balls, added, “Yes, I actually think I middled it (reverse sweep) too well that it went to deep covers.”
Several players experienced cramping during the game due to the extremely difficult conditions, and Gill batted while wearing an ice collar. The Indian captain left the field after his dismissal and didn’t come back during the Afghanistan series.
“A little sore, got a lot of cramps when I went out, but it was really hot and batted for almost 40-45 overs, so the body was getting a lot of cramps in different areas of the body, but it’s much better now,” Gill said.
Because “the wicket was pretty much similar,” the captain of India did not believe it was a good toss to lose. “If you would have gotten a target of 310-320, it would have been a good chase for us and it would have been a good kind of pressure on our batting group.”
On the debutants in his team, Gill said, “I think they’re all in very good space. The way our fast bowlers are bowling in this heat, on these wickets, it’s not easy to keep hitting the deck, keep hitting those areas consistently with that pace. So very happy with that.”
Hashmatullah Shahidi, the captain of Afghanistan, acknowledged that his bowling attack struggled. “You can’t put all things on toss. Our bowling wasn’t good. We gave them momentum in the first 20 overs. It was hot, but at the same time, you have to bowl well. We didn’t win today. Hope we learn from this. Rahmat and Gurbaz are positives but we need to be up to the mark in bowling. It’s been a tough series, hope we do well in Chennai.”
India pacer Arshdeep Singh was pleased to see fresh players collecting wickets. “I’m enjoying what happens on and off the field and ensuring not having regrets of not putting 100%,” said Singh who returned with figures of 3/45.
When asked if he was aware that he was on a hat-trick during the game, he responded, “No idea I was on a hat-trick, so there was no chat. Now I regret it. Gurnoor and Prince are confident. They’re ready to go and hungry for success and take wickets for fun.”
