On September 30, 2026 the weather forecast was said to be dry and humid at Guwahati, usually a place where it rains aplenty each year during the course of the monsoons. But who would have thought that
one man, in particular, would further add to the heat of an already humid day leaving the visitors dry despite scoring a mega 400 plus run total? It didn’t rain at Guwahati, the venue for the second one day international against the West Indies. But then Shubman Gill ensured that his bat rained runs that would eventually lead to a windfall gain for his accomplished and astonishingly good Team India.
He’s not called the prince for nothing. After hitting a maiden career double hundred in just his 19th one day international- the sublime 208 against the mighty New Zealand side in 2023- Shubman Gill fired a second double hundred of his ODI career just hours ago and with it reached his highest ODI individual score. His 223 not out came off just 133 deliveries with Gill remaining unbeaten at a strike rate north of 167.
There are huge totals in world cricket that the side batting second simply fumes at the thought of. Being asked to chase those down seems to overwhelm even the best, at times. Not for India, however, well, not on Shubman Gill’s watch, the young 27 year old who just hit his 10th one day ton.
But here’s a case in point.
What the West Indies achieved, thanks to a trinity of hundreds- John Campbell (101), Shai Hope (104), and Amir Jangoo (114)- was simply outstanding. Monumental even.
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Not that it seemed to matter for Team India who, some would feel destroyed the bowlers donning the maroon so much so that the colour they were wearing might have mirrored their feelings at the end.
Gill and Rohit took India to a 255-run first wicket opening run stand. That was well inside 27 overs. Even as Rohit Sharma, one of the men who widely appreciates Shubman Gill and someone who’d scored his 35th ODI ton, departed by that time, Gill had already begun to explode.
He was on the aggressor. His strike constantly on the upper echelons of 150.
His century was achieved, as one noted, off just 62 odd deliveries. As a matter of fact, by the time the 27th over of the run chase could even be completed, the Indian opening pair had already carved 12 super gorgeous sixes; the entire West Indies team managed that very number off their 50 overs.
Gill had hit 6 by that time.
And in the end, India seemed in a hurry seldom ever looking tired, let alone confused with shot selection. That was largely down to the fact that Shubman Gill combined imperious shot selection to a sense of bravery to ensure India authored history. A young and daring India that, as seen a few hours ago, under Gill’s command seldom breaks into a sweat- even if challenged with a 400 plus run score.
His team hit the required 406 runs towards the end of the evening with 39 deliveries still left in the tank. So they took 6.3 overs fewer to do the job. And the job was to score at over 8 an over, which it ought to be reminded, should never have been easy.
But then isn’t that what great modern day strokemakers do? They make the difficult look easy. They absorb pressure. They endure. They seem in command, and so indefatigable. Let it not be forgotten that Shubman Gill contributed 223 of 406 runs that his team scored.
For a period of time, brief however, even Virat Kohli, the great king of batting, a legend world cricket is fortunate to have, joined his captain during the second innings.
But the Prince seemed so much in hurry to get to the required runs that the world renowned King Kohli didn’t even have to be there. While his brief innings of 29 added to India’s intent, there stood Shubman Gill at the other end as the tall amplifier of India’s dazzling batting.
He brought down curtains on a West Indies team, no mugs with the white ball, with Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph and Jayden Seales in their ranks. And as he did that, perhaps an entire cricket obsessed nation arose, once again, to savour a historic sight.
India achieved its breathtaking record for the highest successful ODI run chase; beating their own previous best record chase of 362-1 versus Australia at Jaipur in 2013.
And while Kohli (100*) and Rohit, (141*), back then were still around on September 30, 2026 to see India create its own piece of ODI history, the date belonged to an artist who’s as authoritative with the bat as he is pleasing to the eye.
Someone whose surname rhymes with the phrase thrill, which is precisely what he adds to the One day international arena, doesn’t he, Shubman Gill?
For the record, 152 of his 223 runs came by way of hits to the fence, of which 104 runs came just by way of boundaries. Heartbreaking for the West Indies but celebratory for an entire nation here in the beating heart of the Indian subcontinent!
