Shubman Gill roars back to form during IND vs ENG 1st ODI as Men in Blue start Champions Trophy preparations right

Following a poor run with the bat in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT), Shubman Gill roared back to form with a brilliant 87 as India defeated England by four wickets in the first ODI to start their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 preparations in the right way in Nagpur on Thursday. India have two more ODIs left before the Champions Trophy starts.

Dropping to no.3 in the absence of Virat Kohli, who missed the game due to a ‘sore right knee’, Shubman Gill played the sheet anchor’s role before being brilliant caught by rival captain Jos Buttler with 13 runs short of a well-deserved hundred.

The right-hander came in the middle when India were two down with just 19 runs on board while chasing England 248. While Shreyas Iyer went all guns blazing at one end, Shubman Gill played the patient game at the other end and found the gaps occasionally.

He first staged a 94-run stand with Shreyas Iyer (59) for the third wicket before forging another 108 runs with Axar Patel, who also scored his third ODI half-century. During his 96-ball stay at the crease, Shubman Gill found the boundary 14 times with no over boundaries.

By the time Shubamn Gill was out, India were in a touching diatance of victory. The hosts evebtually romped home with 11.2 overs and four wickets to spare. The knock also marked the return of Shubman Gill, who managed just 93 runs in five innings against Australia in BGT.

Harshit Rana, Ravindra Jadeja star with ball

Earlier, debutant pacer Harshit Rana (3/53) and seasoned left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja (3/26) shared six wickets between them as India bowled out England for a modest 248. Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel bagged a wicket apiece.

England got off to a flier, reaching 71 for no loss in only eight overs, but India fought back with regular wickets to not allow the visitors run away with momentum. While Phil Salt (43) and Ben Duckett (32) gave England a solid start, skipper Jos Buttler (52) and Jacob Bethell (51) hit fifties.