In what turned out to be an absolute thriller, Dhawan's 97 and Gill's quickfire 64 led the men in blue to a 3-run victory over the West Indies as India gained the early bragging rights in the 3-match series in Trinidad on Saturday.
West Indies won the toss and opted to bowl. Batting first, Gill, played some sublime strokes on his way to a classy 64 before running himself out. Dhawan missed out on a hundred by just three runs, but the southpaw answered all his critics in some style.
Shreyas Iyer, who has had his troubles of late with the short ball, was back amongst the runs with a fluent 54 off 57 balls.India were set for a 350-plus score but Dhawan's dismissal for the seventh time in the 90s led to a middle-order collapse with the visitors reduced to 252 for five from 213 for one.
Sanju Samson (12) squandered a good opportunity to make an impact, while Suryakumar Yadav (13) fell to a loose shot. Deepak Hooda (27) and Axar Patel (21) took India past 300 with a 42-run stand for the sixth wicket.
Chasing 309, Kyle Mayers got to hosts off to a flyer as he smacked the bowers all around the park. Nicolas Pooran stabilised the ship along with King, hit a couple of good-looking maximums and departed soon after.
Brandon, on the other hand, kept digging in and made a gritty 50. Akeal Hosein played the perfect partner to King, kept rotating the strike, and also chipped in with some big hits. But Chahal returned to send King back.
Shepherd showed some resistance in the end and it all came down to 15 off the last over. Siraj ultimately held his nerve to defend the target as India won the match by 3 runs.
The second ODI of the series will be played on 24 July at the same venue.
(Inputs PTI)
