IND vs AFG: Gill, Kishan's centuries help India seal series with 170-run win in 2nd ODI

India took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, with a massive 170-run victory in the second ODI on Wednesday, June 17, at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow. After being put in to bat first, India posted a monumental score of 402, getting all out in 49.5 overs, with captain Shubman Gill leading from the front with a breathtaking century.

He was well-supported by Ishan Kishan (125 off 79) as the duo brought the Men in Blue in a commanding position. For Afghanistan, Nangeyalia Kharoti picked up a four-wicket haul, while Rashid Khan (3/48, 8 overs) also chipped in with three wickets.

In reply, Afghanistan’s chase never got going as they capitulated under scoreboard pressure. Only Rahmat Shah (79 off 89) put up some fight, while Sediqullah Atal (42 off 50) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (41 off 33) failed to convert their starts as Afghanistan got bundled out for 232 in 44.3 overs.

For India, Arshdeep Singh (3/45) and Gurnoor Brar (3/60) chipped in with three wickets each, while debutant Prince Yadav (2/56, 7.3 overs) also chipped in with two wickets.

Top run-scorer of the Match

Top wicket-taker of the Match

Player of the Match

India captain Shubman Gill won his second successive Player of the Match award for scoring his ninth ODI century.  He scored a magnificent 154 off just 110 balls with the help of 22 fours and two sixes.

Following his massive 224-run partnership with Ishan Kishan, India were in a commanding position to breach the 450-run mark for the first time in their ODI history. However, they suffered a dramatic collapse, losing eight wickets in the last 81 balls and scoring just 82 runs to finish on 402. However, the total proved to be more than enough for Afghanistan.

Turning Point

Ishan Kishan joined Shubman Gill at the crease with India on 96/2 after 13.1 overs. The duo got involved in a massive 224-run stand off just 140 deliveries and helped the team reach 320-run mark after 36.3 overs. Gill brought up his century off just 77 balls, while Kishan reached the milestone in 71 balls. It was the first instance of two Indian batters scoring a century under 80 balls in the same ODI. 

What did the captains say:

Winning Captain, Shubman Gill (India):  

(How's your body?) 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. (How do you look at your batting and where you are right now?) 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, I want to finish the matches and bat till 40-45 overs and build that habit, whenever I get a start, I want to convert those into big ones. (Were you eyeing a double hundred?) Yes, I was, but I knew that I'll have to keep hitting my shots, keep 430, 440, 450 in mind. Yes, I actually think I middled it (reverse sweep) too well that it went to deep covers. (Do you feel it was a good toss to lose?) Not really. Even if you would have bowled first, I think the wicket was pretty much similar. 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. (What have you made of the debutants and also the other players in the side?) 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.

Losing Captain, Hashmatullah Shahidi (Afghanistan):

You cannot put all things on toss. I think we were not good enough in the bowling. So many easy options in the bowling to them. We gave them momentum, I think that's why we didn't bowl well in the first 20 overs. Yeah, it was hot, but at the same time, you cannot put everything on toss. You have to bowl well in the right areas. We didn't do that well today, so hopefully we will learn from this. (On sending Darwish Rasooli to bat) I think he was cramping. I asked him, coach asked him if he is okay, he said, 'I am okay, I want to bat.' So that's why I told him to go before me because he is a good striker of the ball and we needed someone to hit big for us, but unfortunately he got cramps again and hopefully he recovers soon. (On the final ODI and the takeaways from this series) I think a lot of learnings because it was a tough series for us and hopefully in the Chennai game, we do well and I think we had positives also in this series. The way Rahmat played today and the way Gurbaz is playing, we have all these positive things with us, but we need to be up to the mark in our bowling department because next game is also crucial for us and hopefully we are up to the mark in the bowling department.