After T20 Humiliation, India Bounces Back In ODI

India had possibly the worst couple of months in the T20 format as they ended up losing T20 series to Ireland and then to England. This will go down as one of the worst passages for Indian cricket in the T20 format.

However, the positive thing is that India has made a positive start in the ODI against England that started last night. India made a positive start to the series by winning the first game in a very comprehensive manner.

England batted first and scored 258 runs which was always going to be an easy chase for India in the modern standards. This was brilliantly evident in the game as India was able to chase down the target comfortably, despite the failure of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

Incidentally, Indian cricket team fans gathered in big numbers to watch Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in action after a long time, but they both disappointed big time. Neither of them could stay at the crease for long and score big runs, which is a disappointing factor here.

But nevertheless, Shubman Gill was in absolute form as he scored 80 runs from 75 balls. He was the star of the innings for India with his brilliant batting performance in the second innings.

Axar Patel was named Player of the Match for his outstanding all round performance. He picked up four crucial wickets to put India in a strong position and then followed it up with a well made 57, making a significant contribution with both ball and bat.

Washington Sundar, who had been facing a lot of criticism in the recent past was also reasonably alright in this game as he scored 40 runs and remained not out at the crease as India won the game by six wickets margin. 

After the earlier humiliation in the T20 series, this is going to be a positive outcome for India in the ODI series, but the crucial thing is going to be to maintain the momentum and secure this series in the end.