Shubman Gill’s first century against Zimbabwe in the third ODI in Harare allowed him to surpass Sachin Tendulkar’s illustrious record. India defeated Zimbabwe by 13 runs in the last ODI to win the series 3-0 thanks to Gill’s 130 from 97 balls.
Shubman Gill was getting closer to that elusive international hundred with scores of 64, 43, 98*, 82*, and 33 in his last five ODI innings. In the third ODI against the West Indies at Sabina Park, he was prevented by the rain. Due to numerous weather delays, the umpires had to terminate India’s innings while he was on 98.
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In his next task for the series opener against Zimbabwe in Harare, Gill was aiming for a million dollars, but the home team’s total wasn’t high enough for him to reach three digits. He scored the most with an unbeatable 82. Despite appearing good, he was dropped to No. 3 for the second match and lost for 33. His last chance to maybe convince the selectors that he is a legitimate alternative at the top of the order in limited-overs cricket came in the third and final ODI. Despite the early dismissals of KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan by the Zimbabwe bowling assault, Gill performed at his peak.
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The right-hander had superb innings, scoring 130 runs off 97 balls while hitting 15 fours and a six. Gill’s efforts also assisted him in setting records. In an ODI in Zimbabwe, the right-hander from Punjab scored the highest total ever by an Indian. Sachin Tendulkar’s 24-year record was broken by Gill. In 1998, the renowned cricketer scored an unbeatable 127 in Bulawayo. In addition, Gill, who is 22 years and 348 days old, became the second-youngest Indian with an ODI hundred behind Mohammed Kaif against Zimbabwe (21y 287d).
When Gill attempted to hit a boundary off the opening ball of the final over, he instead attained height rather than length off a Brad Evans delivery and was caught by Innocent Kaia at long-off. But by that point, he had made sure that India had batted first and posted the impressive total of 298 for 8.
After the game, Gill, who won Player of the Series for his 245 runs in three ODIs, stated, “It’s a terrific group of players, and I’ve been playing with them for some time now.”
