Through the global financial crisis, the Arab Spring, the discovery of the Higgs boson, humanity’s first image of a black hole, a pandemic that brought the world to a halt, and the rise of generative AI, the world has not seen a successful ODI chase in excess of 400.
The last such chase came in March 2006. On Wednesday, Shubman Gill’s forensic artistry (223 n.o., 133b, 26×4, 8×6) and Rohit Sharma’s slouching grandeur (101, 75b, 10×4, 6×6) came to the fore as India finally joined that rare club. Chasing down 406 with eight wickets to spare, India took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series against West Indies at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium.
There is something faintly García Marquez-like about Gill’s current form. The extraordinary keeps occurring with such regularity that everyone has stopped treating it as extraordinary. A hundred from him now feels like rain in Macondo: remarkable in isolation, almost routine in accumulation. This time, he doubled down on it – in double-quick time.
IND vs WI, 2nd ODI – AS IT HAPPENED
Gill’s batting was silk and shrapnel. His wrists were particularly persuasive, shuffling deep into the leg side before cutting through backward point, or flicking over midwicket with the ease of a samurai wielding a light sword. He used his feet repeatedly, dancing down to Roston Chase and Keemo Paul and launching sixes over square leg and cow corner.
There was no reaching, lunging or rescue missions during Rohit Sharma’s knock of 101.
| Photo Credit:
RITU RAJ KONWAR
There was no reaching, lunging or rescue missions during Rohit Sharma’s knock of 101.
| Photo Credit:
RITU RAJ KONWAR
There was precision, too: a late slice between deep point and deep third, a pristine punch past cover, a full-faced drive that left mid-on stranded. Even the short ball was not safe – a 141.3-kph delivery from Alzarri Joseph disappeared into the stands off Gill’s signature short-arm jab. He reached his hundred off 62 balls, his 11th in ODIs, before going on to raise the fastest ODI double hundred, off 117 balls.
Together, Gill and Rohit added 255 runs, the second-highest opening partnership in ODIs for India.
Rohit once said that when he is batting well, he gets into good positions. Watch him on a good day and you see it. A slight adjustment of the feet, a quiet transfer of weight, a subtle alignment of shoulders and eyes. No reaching. No lunging. No rescue missions. Just a man arriving exactly where he needs to be, exactly when he needs to be there. The shot feels inevitable because the position was perfect.
Earlier, John Campbell wasn’t to be trifled with. After all, when a man treats a missed hundred as unfinished business, he is best given a wide berth. If his 60-ball 62 in the first ODI was useful, his 68-ball 101 (9×4, 5×6) here was punitive. Campbell, skipper Shai Hope (104, 94b, 8×4, 3×6), and Amir Jangoo (114, 77b, 13×4, 3×6) formed the Caribbean century cartel as West Indies posted 405 for seven.
Published on Sep 30, 2026
