India captain Shubman Gill (AP Photo/Ashwini Bhatia)
Shubman Gill added another chapter to his remarkable rise in international cricket when he became the fastest Indian to reach 3,000 runs in an ODI during the opening match of the three-match series against Afghanistan in Dharamsala on Saturday.The India captain reached the milestone in his 61st innings, surpassing Shikhar Dhawan’s previous Indian record of 72 runs. Only former South African opener Hashim Amla, who achieved the feat in 57 innings, reached the milestone faster, making Gill the second fastest batsman in ODI history to 3,000 runs.
This latest achievement underscored Gill’s growing status as one of the best players in world cricket.Gill, who made his ODI debut against New Zealand in January 2019, has enjoyed a prolific start to his one-day career.
The right-hander reached 3,000 runs with an average comfortably above 55 while maintaining a batting average near 100, highlighting his ability to combine consistency with offensive hitting.Former South African opener Hashim Amla still holds the world record, having reached 3000 runs in just 57 innings. Gill’s effort puts him ahead of a distinguished group that includes West Indies’ Shai Hope and Pakistani batsmen Fakhar Zaman and Imam ul Haq, who all took 67 runs to reach the feat.
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The Punjabi batter also surpassed former India opener Dhawan, whose 72-run effort had been the national standard for several years.Gill’s latest achievement adds to his already impressive ODI resume which includes eight centuries and several match-winning performances. The 26-year-old has established himself as a cornerstone of India’s batting unit across formats.Earlier in the match, debutants Harsh Dubey and Gurnoor Brar each took three wickets, but Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s quick-fire 102 guided Afghanistan to 194 in their rain-interrupted ODI opener against India in Dharamsala on Saturday.The contest was reduced to 25 matches per side due to heavy rain earlier in the day.Dubey was a bit expensive but returned figures of 3/47 from his allotted five overs, while Brar remained disciplined and finished with figures of 3/27 in 4.5 overs.However, it was Afghanistan’s opener that stole the show, as they fired 102 off just 51 balls. His innings included eight fours and eight sixes and helped push Afghanistan to a competitive total.