Continuing his red-hot form, India opener Shubman Gill on Tuesday brought up his 4th ODI century in the third and final match of the series against New Zealand at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore to equal a rare record set by Pakistan's Babar Azam against West Indies in 2016. Gill made 112 runs off just 78 balls, bringing up his second century of the series. Earlier in the series opener in Hyderabad, the opening batter had smashed a 208 to become the fifth Indian batter to get to an ODI double hundred. After the match, the opening batsman was thronged by fans on Tuesday. And Gill was left blushing after one of the fans told the batsman, "Sachin ka dhyan rakha karo (Take care of Sachin)." Gill is rumoured to be dating cricket icon's daughter Sara Tendulkar.
With the latest knock, Gill took his tally of runs in the bilateral series to 360, having made 40 in the second ODI of the series. The tally of runs is the joint-most recorded by any batter in a bilateral ODI series of three matches or lower. In 2016, Babar Azam also made 360 runs during the series against West Indies, registering three hundred in three matches.
With his knock, Gill also became the fastest Indian to complete four ODI centuries in terms of innings taken. He accomplished the feat in only his 21st ODI innings. Shikhar Dhawan previously held this record, having taken 24 innings for four ODI centuries while Virat Kohli took 33 innings for his first four ODI tons. The 23-year-old Gill has had a terrific start to his ODI career, racking up 1254 runs in 21 matches at an average of 73.76 and a strike rate of 109.80. And the youngster completed 1000 runs earlier in the series in his 19th ODI innings, becoming the fastest Indian and the second-fastest global to the landmark.
In Indore, he put on a double-century stand (212 runs) with Rohit Sharma to power India to a massive 385/9 in 50 overs after the hosts won the toss and opted to bat first. Gill and Rohit have now shared six opening partnerships in ODIs, with five of them crossing the fifty-run mark.
