Dharamshala, June 13 (IANS) The crowd at the HPCA Stadium may have come expecting a full 50‑over contest, but they were treated to an entertaining 25‑over chase in a match truncated due to rain as skipper Shubman Gill hit 84 not out to help India beat Afghanistan by seven wickets in the ODI series opener on Saturday.

After debutants Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey claimed three wickets apiece to help India bowl out Afghanistan for 194, despite a blistering 102 coming from Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s willow, Gill produced a knock of absolute authority and was at his sublime best to hit 11 fours and two sixes in his 66-ball knock, taking India home with 13 balls to spare.

India needed a solid start, and skipper Rohit Sharma provided it before a mix‑up cut short his innings. Shubman Gill carried on fluently, striking boundaries to keep the tempo high. He was joined by Ishan Kishan, who sparkled on his return to ODIs with a 22‑ball 34, while peppering the field with aggressive strokes.

KL Rahul then took charge in the middle overs, ensuring there was no let‑up. The right‑hander remained unbeaten on a 19‑ball 39, laced with four boundaries and three sixes to guide India home with ease, as they never looked under pressure in the chase.

Afghanistan’s bowlers struggled to find rhythm. Rashid Khan was expensive but managed to pick up a wicket, while the pacers leaked runs throughout. The visitors failed to build momentum with the ball, allowing India’s batters to dominate from start to finish, as the hosts maintained their unbeaten record against them.

The innings began dramatically when Azmatullah Omarzai conceded five wides and a no‑ball, before Rohit was struck on the wrist by his short delivery, and required treatment from the physio. Rohit soon found his rhythm, punching through covers and pulling Omarzai for a six to reach 16,000 international runs. Gill joined in with crisp drives, and the pair had a 46-run opening stand.

The opening stand was broken when a mix‑up led to Rohit’s run‑out for 16. Gill carried on, unfazed, and was joined by Ishan Kishan, whose aggressive knock included three fours and a six, but Rashid Khan’s googly castled him in the 13th over.

Shreyas Iyer added a few boundaries, but pulled to mid-on for 12 off Zia. At 137/3, India still held control thanks to Gill’s composure. The skipper reached his fifty off 37 balls with a pull off Nabi and crossed 3,000 ODI runs during the chase.

He struck sixes and fours with absolute authority, while Rahul ensured there were no late hiccups. He began cautiously but soon accelerated with his lofted cover drives and pulls, before completing the chase in the 23rd over and helping India take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Previously, Gurbaz had luck on his side – India didn’t review an lbw appeal when he was on 14, and he made them pay. After taking time to get going and understanding the pitch, he launched into the Indian back-up bowlers with some outrageous clean hitting in a 25-overs-a-side contest.

In an outstanding knock studded with eight fours and as many sixes, Gurbaz brought up his ninth hundred off 48 balls, the fastest by an Afghan batter in the 50-over format and the second fastest by any batter against India in ODIs.

At one point, Afghanistan looked set to get beyond 220, but Gurbaz’s dismissal helped India claw back. Barring Hashmatullah Shahidi and Azmatullah Omarzai making 20s, none of the other batters got past single digits. For India, Gurnoor and Harsh maintained their composure and bowling smarts to pick three-fors while Arshdeep Singh and Nitish Kumar Reddy chipped in with two scalps each.

Afghanistan’s innings began shakily as Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, and Rahmat Shah fell inside the powerplay. Gurbaz, however, counter‑attacked spectacularly as Washington Sundar, Dubey, and Prasidh Krishna bore the brunt of his big-hitting. With 78 percent of his runs coming in boundaries, Gurbaz put on a treat for fans who braved four hours and 15 minutes of rain delay and left them enthralled.

Shahidi offered support with a fluent 27, while adding a 116-run stand with Gurbaz at a run‑rate of over ten. Azmatullah Omarzai chipped in with a brisk 26, but once Nitish Kumar Reddy dismissed Gurbaz with a pinpoint slower yorker for 102, Afghanistan’s momentum stalled.

Left-arm spinner Dubey recovered from an expensive start to strike thrice – removing Shahidi, Omarzai, and AM Ghazanfar to take 3-47, while lanky right-arm pacer Brar capped his debut by castling Rashid Khan with pace and later had Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi caught at long‑on to finish with 3-27, as India’s bowlers, rattled initially, pulled things back smartly in the final overs.

Brief scores:

Afghanistan 194 all out in 24.5 overs (Rahmanullah Gurbaz 102, Hashmatullah Shahidi 27; Gurnoor Brar 3-27, Harsh Dubey 3-47) lost to India 195/3 in 22.5 overs (Shubman Gill 84 not out, KL Rahul 39 not out; Rashid Khan 1-37, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi 1-39) by seven wickets

–IANS

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