Indian captain Shubman Gill has heaped praise on the Indian middle-order batters Axar Patel and Washington Sundar for creating an impact in the middle and death overs to take the side over the line in the first ODI against England on Tuesday, July 14.
Speaking at the post-match presentation after India’s six-wicket victory, Gill has also talked about the bowling attack being a bit young compared to the batting order, adding that the batting line-up can also chase a target of 300 to 320.
“When you see your middle and lower middle order score runs and finish the job, it gives confidence as a captain. It was about our combination,” Gill said after the game.
“We have a youngish bowling attack. Our batting is more experienced than our bowling. So even if we had a target of 300-320, we backed ourselves to chase that,” he added.
“Our bowling in the middle phase was good. We bowled the right areas, they got away at the end of the powerplay. We were put under pressure but how we came back and bounced back was important,” he stated.
“We’ll try different combinations and see which gives us the best depth in both departments. The conditions were close to South Africa – the ball was kicking up, wasn’t easy to score. The wicket then settled nicely,” he concluded.
Delving into the details of the game, England opted to bat first and posted a good-looking total of 258 in 47.5 overs. Joe Root was the top-scorer, amassing an unbeaten 76-run knock while Liam Dawson scored 68 runs. Axar Patel scalped a four-wicket haul.
In the chase, India finished off the proceedings in 45.2 overs with six wickets in hand. Shubman Gill (80), Washington Sundar (52*) and Axar Patel (57*) were the top batters in the second innings.
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