Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan score dominating centuries as India overwhelm Afghanistan
India – 402 (Shubman Gill 154 (110 balls), Ishan Kishan 125 (79 balls)) beat Afghanistan – 232 (Rahmat Shah 79 (89 balls), Arshdeep Singh 45/3, Gurnoor Brar 60/3)
India win by 170 runs. Man of the Match – Shubman Gill
After getting beaten by India comfortably in the 1st ODI, Afghanistan would have been hoping for a better show in the 2nd ODI of the India vs Afghanistan series. Winning the toss, they made the odd decision to field first in the sweltering heat of Lucknow. Even more surprising was the fact that Indian captain Shubman Gill confirmed that given a chance, he would have done the same.
The unavailability of all-rounder Nitish Reddy due to a sore thigh impacted the balance of the Indian lineup, bringing in Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kuldeep Yadav and Prince Yadav, in his international debut, to the team. Barring Jaiswal, the Indian top order fired big time. A bright start from Gill and Rohit was advanced further as both Gill and Ishan Kishan started batting in T20 mode, and a total of 450 looked increasingly likely.
A late-order collapse saw them being restricted to 402 all out, the highest all-out ODI total. Chasing a mammoth score, Afghanistan was never in the hunt. A couple of good-looking innings from their batsmen were all they could offer, and they folded up 170 runs short of the target.
The Indian innings started with Jaiswal opening with Rohit Sharma. Jaiswal started with a boundary off a fierce cut, but fell to the very next ball, trying the same shot off Mohammad Saleem, with Kharote doing a bit of a juggle before holding the catch at backward point. Gill, the in-form batsman, came in at no. 3 and began with a trademark cover drive for four off the bowling of Ghazanfar.
As Saleem went short, Rohit made his intentions clear with back-to-back pulled sixes. Afghanistan’s experiment to open the bowling with a spinner was going slightly pear-shaped as Ghazanfar, after bowling a maiden first over, was subject to some dazzling Gill off-side shots. The second spinner to bowl, Kharote, started with a juicy leg side full toss that was duly dispatched by Gill for a six. 23 decent balls later, he bowled a half-tracker which was hammered for another maximum by Gill. Kharote’s figures after five overs read 35/0.
That was the story of the day for Afghanistan on this day. Batsmen could easily pace their innings knowing that a bad delivery would come up at some point. The intense heat further exacerbated the situation as the bowlers struggled with their line and length and the fielders repeatedly gave away easy boundaries.
Rohit was making full use of the width he was getting as he was able to throw his bat at those deliveries and make full use of the fielding restrictions. India was 80/1 at the end of 10 overs, without seemingly taking any risks. Rashid Khan was brought in the twelfth over and immediately made his presence felt. His first over went for 2 runs and included a couple of false strokes. In his next over, he bowled Rohit through the gates with a superb googly. Rohit scored 48 in 39 balls, and the next man to come was Ishan Kishan.
Since Rashid’s introduction, there was a comparative dip in the run rate, as both Gill and Kishan started consolidating. The current rate was already healthy, and India could afford some quiet overs in between. Gill brought up his 50 off 38 balls and was motoring along while Kishan concentrated on rotating the strike. His first stroke in anger was in the 21st over as he swivelled and pulled a short delivery from Mohammad Saleem high over the long leg boundary. Using the crease well to both spinners and pacers, he expertly manoeuvred the ball for boundaries, occasionally using his power to pummel it in the stands for six. He soon reached his fifty in 52 balls.
It was on reaching his 50 that he decided to break loose. In the 30th over, Ghazanfar was targeted for two boundaries on the leg side and a six over deep cover. Rashid Khan was also taken for a couple of boundaries and a six in the 32nd over, as Ishan was all over him, stroking both sides of the wicket and also a straight one over the bowler’s head for symmetry. Gill was on 88 when Ishan made his 50, but by the time Gill was on 99, he had reached 91.
The 33rd over first saw Gill getting his century off 77 balls with an effortless flick, and then Ishan reaching his off 71 balls with three consecutive boundaries off Bilal Sami. This brought about another round of mayhem on the Afghanistan bowlers by both Gill and Ishan, the former all elegance and grace while the latter innovative and explosive. Anything near the off stump was pinging off Gill’s bat through the covers, while anything short was being dealt with equal severity on the leg side.
Looking virtually unstoppable by the baffled Afghanistan attack, a few murmurs of 500 could be heard at one point. But the scorching heat was taking its toll on the players, which included the batsmen. Maybe sensing this, Ishan just went for it, tonking consecutive one-handed sixes on the leg side, before being caught near the same area in the deep. His 125 in 79 balls was a masterclass in limited overs batting.
At the other end, Gill was teaching the Afghanistan bowlers a lesson of his own. Never in any sort of trouble, his shot-making was both glorious and effective. The pair had scored 127 runs in the last 51 balls of the partnership and took India to 322/3 in 37 overs, effectively finishing off the match.
Gill too was feeling the heat and started cramping. Shreyas Iyer, fresh at the crease and looking to run hard, had Gill in trouble a couple of times as the latter was struggling for breath. Gill finally reached his 150 in 107 balls. It was an incredible achievement, considering the playing conditions. Soon after, he played an uncharacteristic reverse sweep and holed out to deep cover. It was not a shot one would expect from him, but extreme heat makes people do strange things, as the fielding side was discovering.
By now, they had completely lost the plot, appearing to go through the motions, feeding the batsmen in their scoring areas, only to retrieve the ball back from the boundary. Physical fatigue amplified by the hammering they had received from the Indian batsmen was taking its toll. To their credit, they found their bearings and came back strongly, albeit far too late to change the match situation.
KL Rahul was dismissed next ball for a golden duck, lofting Kharote straight down long on’s throat. In his next over, Kharote had Iyer swinging to be caught down at long on. From a nightmarish start to the day, Kharote had suddenly picked up 3 important wickets in 2 overs and finished the day at 76/4 in his 10 overs. The lower order continued swinging and flailing, but ended up giving catching practice in the outfield. Washington Sundar made 19 before feathering one on the leg side to be caught by the keeper.
India was eventually dismissed in 49.5 balls, setting up a target of 402. From 322/3 in 37 overs when Ishan Kishan was dismissed, they added only 80 runs in the last 13 overs. But the damage had already been done earlier, and Afghanistan needed something special to come anywhere near the target.
The Afghanistan openers looked to score briskly, but Arshdeep Singh found a good length and line, while Gurnoor was always dangerous with his extra pace, repeatedly putting the batsmen in awkward positions. Prince Yadav, perhaps a bit nervous on his debut, was taken for runs. However, he should have had his first international wicket in his third over as Rahmanullah Gurbaz mistimed a short ball straight to mid-on, only to be declared a no ball by the umpire.
Gurbaz was not so lucky next time, as he edged a fast bouncer from Gurnoor back to the keeper, done in by the extra bounce. At 52/1 in 7.3 overs, Afghanistan were already behind the eight ball, but the next few overs further ensured the direction the match was going. Ibrahim Zadran was bounced out by Arshdeep, with Prince Yadav taking a stunner, running in from deep fine leg.
Sediqullah Atal played a couple of handsome cover drives, and a straight six off Kuldeep, but was pinned LBW by Washington for 42 in 50 balls. An already injured Darwish Rasooli was sent in next, but faced only 6 balls before seemingly injuring his hamstring further and had to be taken off the field. In a match filled with strange decisions, sending an injured batsman in a stiff chase early in the innings is right up there.
Hashmatullah Shahidi played on to a Gurnoor short ball, while Prince rattled Kharote’s off stump for his first ODI wicket. A short prayer upwards was followed by a smile, indicating relief more than joy. Trying to force the pace, Rashid Khan ramped a short ball from Arshdeep straight to third man. Next over, Arshdeep had Ghazanfar spooning straight to mid-off for his third wicket. No. 10 Mohammad Saleem, batting with the attitude of a Test opener, forward defence and all, was bowled by a searing yorker from Gurnoor. Rahmat Shah was Afghanistan’s highest scorer of this match and also the last man out, caught at deep fine leg off Prince Yadav’s bowling.
India won by a massive 170 runs and should rightfully be delighted. But a few issues remain. First is the lower-order collapse, which may have been partially due to the absence of the medium pace allrounder in the team, something that Shubman Gill acknowledged early during the toss. The second is Kuldeep Yadav’s form. At his best, he is worth his weight in gold. But in the recent few months, his bowling has lacked the earlier menace.
His fielding has generally been a liability, nor can he be relied on for his batting. He finished with respectable figures of 42/0 in his ten overs, but was the only one among the main bowlers to go wicketless. His first seven overs had gone for 36, and he bowled his last few overs only when the lower order was batting. For India to do well against stronger opponents, an in-form Kuldeep is vital.
Afghanistan spent half the match looking shell-shocked and only displayed a glimpse of their ability towards the end of India’s innings. They would know that they are a better side than what they have shown so far in the series. They have lost the ODI series, but rest assured, they would be hurting, and for them this would be no dead rubber.