New Delhi: India defeated England by six wickets in the first ODI at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Tuesday, July 14, to bring an end to their winless run in their ongoing tour of the UK. After losing all five of their completed matches in the T20I leg and suffering back-to-back series defeats against Ireland and the hosts,India returned to winning ways in theODI series opener.

Skipper Shubman Gill led from the front with an unbeaten 80 before getting retired hurt due to a hamstring issue, while Axar Patel and Washington Sundar slammed half-centuries apiece to guide India home comfortably in the 258-run chase. In pursuit of the moderate target, the visitors were left in a spot of bother at one stage after losing senior batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in quick succession.

However. Gill combined with Shreyas Iyer to steady the ship before Axar and Sundar joined hands to help India get over the line with 28 balls to spare. Gill looked in sublime touch as he continued his purple patch for India in ODIs this year. The skipper shared a 43-run opening stand with Rohit, who was dismissed cheaply on 11 by Sam Curran after being caught by Harry Brook.

Jofra Archer then removed Virat Kohli with a peach of a delivery as the star batter was sent packing cheaply on 5 in his comeback from injury. Gill and Iyer combined to steady the ship after the duo’s departure and brought India back into the contest with a 101-run stand for the third wicket, which ended after Gill had to leave the field retired hurt.

The Indian skipper was cruising towards his century but felt discomfort in his hamstrings on a few occasions before eventually deciding to walk off while being not out on 80. Gill’s services were not required again in the run chase, and India would hope the skipper’s discomfort was only due to cramps and not a major hamstring issue.

After Gill left the field, India lost a well-set Iyer on 35 due to an unfortunate run-out, leaving them in a precarious position. The visitors also lost the experienced KL Rahul cheaply on a duck after he was played down against pacer Josh Tongue. Just when it looked like England might make a comeback in the game, Axar and Sundar shared a gritty stand to help India cruise towards the target.

Axar and Sundar shared a valiant partnership under pressure to turn the game in India’s favour. Sundar remained not out on 52 off 63 deliveries, while Axar scored an unbeaten 57 off 52 balls. The duo added an unbeaten 102-run stand for the fifth wicket to help India wrap up the run chase comfortably and go 1-0 up in the three-match series.

Axar was named Player of the Match for his all-round show. The left-arm all-rounder picked up a four-wicket haul with the ball to help India skittle out England for 258 runs after they opted to bat first, before scoring a match-winning fifty to take his team home in the tricky run chase at Edgbaston.

Earlier, Indian pacers shone as the visitors bundled out England for 258 runs after they opted to bat first in the game. Openers Ben Duckett (43) and Jacob Bethell (14) got the hosts off to a solid start with a 61-run stand for the first wicket, however, England suffered a mini collapse after the duo’s departure.

They went from 61/1 to 80/5 inside just four overs as Indian pacers ran riot. However, half-centuries from Joe Root and Liam Dawson helped the hosts recover and fight back to post a fighting total of 258 runs on the board. Root scored an unbeaten 76 and was well supported by Dawson, who scored 68 off 83 balls.

Jasprit Bumrah looked good on his much-awaited comeback but managed only a solitary wicket while conceding 31 runs off his 9 overs in the game. Gurnoor Brar bowled a decent spell, picking up two wickets, while Prasidh Krishna also bagged two wickets. Axar ran through England’s tail to bag a four-fer while Shivam Dube got the important wicket of Will Jacks.

Besides skipper Gill, India were handed another injury scare in the game as pacer Brar was taken off the field after feeling discomfort in his hamstring during the final over of his spell. Brar was attended by the physio after struggling in his run-up and left the field with a niggle.