Shubman Gill after recording his first fifty on the Wisconsin Tour: “Very Special For Me, I Was Looking For A Big Score”

After many disappointing scores during the current tour, India opener Shubman Gill found his form in the third One-Day International against the West Indies. At Brian Lara Stadium, the right-handed batsman hit 85 runs, including 11 fours, as India crushed the hosts by 200 runs to win the series 2-1.

Gill’s performance was vital for him since in the last four games of the tour, he had trouble finding his stroke. Prior to the ODIs, the 23-year-old scored six and 10 & 29* runs in the two-match Test series. He scored seven and 34 runs, respectively, in the first two ODIs. Gill, who was up against colleague Ishan Kishan for the opening spot, described the innings as “very special” and said he is only trying to be the best version of himself.

“Really meaningful for me; I was hoping for a huge score, but sadly it didn’t happen. I’m glad we came out on top, however. It was a good (pitch); at first, the ball was developing wonderfully, but as it became older, it became harder to hit. You need to keep applying pressure to the opposition because that’s how the current developments in ODI cricket have changed the game. In the last game, I was ready and aiming for a big one and trying to accelerate. In the post-game presentation, Gill said, “I just try to do my best and not think too much about who’s playing or not.”

The 143-run opening partnership was put up by Gill and Ishan Kishan after West Indies requested that they bat first. In the ODI series, Kishan scored 77 runs, which was his third straight half-century. He finished the series with a total of 184 runs scored and won Player of the Series.

In addition to the opening pair, stand-in captain Hardik Pandya and Sanju Samson each scored 51 runs off of 41 balls to lead India to 351/5 in 50 overs.

In response, West Indies were dismissed for 151 in 35.3 overs by Shardul Thakur and Mukesh Kumar, who took four and three wickets each.

Starting on Thursday, August 3, a five-match T20I series will pit both sides against one another.