India secured a thrilling four-wicket victory over England in the opening ODI of the series at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur, taking a 1-0 lead in the three-match contest. Chasing a target of 249, India relied on impressive performances from Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer, who struck match-winning half-centuries to guide their team to victory.
A solid win in the bag for #TeamIndia! 💪 💪
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 6, 2025
They beat England by 4⃣ wickets in Nagpur & take 1-0 lead in the ODI series! 👏 👏
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/lWBc7oPRcd#INDvENG | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/lJkHoih56n
England, having won the toss and elected to bat first, got off to a promising start with openers Phil Salt and Ben Duckett. Salt took an aggressive approach, punishing debutant Harshit Rana with boundaries and a 26-run over. Duckett also contributed, striking three consecutive fours off Axar Patel. However, their 75-run stand was broken by a sharp piece of fielding from Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul, resulting in Salt’s run-out after a quickfire 43 off 28 balls. Harshit soon made his mark, dismissing Duckett for 32 with a well-judged catch by Yashasvi Jaiswal at midwicket.
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India continued to tighten their grip on the game, with Harshit forcing Harry Brook into a glove shot that carried to Rahul, reducing England to 77/3 in 10 overs. Captain Jos Buttler and Joe Root attempted to stabilize the innings, but Root’s struggles in ODIs continued as he was trapped leg-before by Ravindra Jadeja for 19. With England at 111/4 in 18.3 overs, Buttler found some support from young Jacob Bethell, who played a composed role while his skipper took on the spinners. Their 59-run partnership ended when Axar Patel deceived Buttler, who lobbed a catch to Hardik Pandya at short fine leg after scoring 52 from 67 balls.
Harshit struck again to remove Liam Livingstone cheaply for five, leaving England at 183/6 in 35.4 overs. Brydon Carse and Bethell guided England past the 200-run mark before Mohammed Shami bowled Carse for 10. England’s aggressive intent backfired as they slumped to 206/7 in 39.5 overs. Bethell continued to fight, reaching his fifty before Jadeja trapped him leg-before for 51. The spinner soon rattled Adil Rashid’s stumps and England were reduced to 241/9 in 46.4 overs. Kuldeep Yadav had the final say, dismissing Saqib Mahmood via a KL Rahul stumping, as England were bowled out for 248 in 47.4 overs. Jadeja (3/26) and Harshit (3/53) were India’s standout bowlers, while Kuldeep, Axar, and Shami chipped in with a wicket each.
In response, India’s chase began with openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma, but their partnership lasted only 19 runs before Jofra Archer removed Jaiswal for 15 in the 4.3 overs. Skipper Rohit followed soon after, dismissed by Saqib Mahmood in the 5.2 overs after scoring just two runs. Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer then took control, forging a dominant 94-run stand that put India in command. Iyer was particularly aggressive, racing to a fifty in the 14th over at a strike rate of 163.89. However, his innings ended at 59 runs from 36 balls when Jacob Bethell dismissed him in the 15.6 over.
Axar Patel joined Gill at the crease, and the duo added another 108 runs to further consolidate India’s position. Gill reached his half-century in the 25th over, playing a crucial knock to keep India on track. With victory in sight, England found a breakthrough as Rashid dismissed Axar in the 33.4 overs after he had made a valuable 52 off 47 balls. KL Rahul was the next man in, but his stay was brief as Rashid struck again in the 35.4 overs.
Hardik Pandya then arrived and made an immediate impact, smashing a boundary. Meanwhile, Gill, who seemed destined for a century, fell short by just 13 runs when Mahmood dismissed him in the 36.2 overs. Ravindra Jadeja stepped in and finished the game in style, hitting the winning runs with a four. He remained unbeaten on 12 off 10 balls, while Hardik scored nine from six balls, including a six.
For England, Mahmood and Rashid were the most successful bowlers, claiming two wickets each. India will now look to seal the series in the second ODI, set to take place on Sunday in Cuttack.
Brief Scores:
- England: 248 (Jos Buttler 52, Jacob Bethell 51, Phil Salt 43; Ravindra Jadeja 3/26)
- India 251/6 (Shubman Gill 87, Shreyas Iyer 59, Axar Patel 52; Saqib Mahmood 2/47).
Full Scorecard: India vs England 1st ODI Feb 6, 2025
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