00:04India made a dominant start to their three-match ODI series against the West Indies,
00:10defeating the visitors by eight wickets in the first ODI at the Greenfield International Stadium
00:15in Thiruvananth Puram on 27 September. Chasing to 96, India reached 300 by 2 in just 41.4 overs,
00:25with Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill producing sensational centuries.
00:30After India won the toss and elected to field, West Indies began aggressively.
00:36Openers John Campbell and Justin Greaves put together a 135-run partnership,
00:43putting early pressure on the Indian bowling attack. Campbell scored a fluent 62 off-60 balls,
00:50while Greaves converted his opportunity into a memorable maiden ODI century.
00:56The West Indies opener smashed 101 from 108 deliveries and helped his side build what
01:02initially looked like a 300-plus total. However, India's bowlers fought back strongly in the middle
01:09overs. The key breakthrough came from Kuldeep Yadav, who made an immediate impact on his ODI return.
01:17The spinner finished with impressive figures of 440 from his 10 overs and was named player of the match.
01:25Kuldeep's wickets disrupted the West Indies' momentum after their excellent opening partnership.
01:31Despite a late contribution from Amir Jangu, West Indies eventually finished on 295-7 from their 50
01:40overs. Captain Shai Hope later admitted that his team could have added another 60-80 runs after the
01:47strong start. India's chase began with Rohit Sharma and Captain Shubman Gill putting together a rapid
01:5474-run opening partnership. Rohit scored 32 before being dismissed, but Gill continued to control the
02:03chase. The Indian captain went on to complete his 10th ODI century, finishing with 110 runs from 108 balls.
02:11Gill also received a major reprieve early in his innings when he was dropped on 11.
02:19West Indies were unable to capitalize on the opportunity as India's batting lineup took control.
02:25The biggest moment of India's chase came from Virat Kohli.
02:30Returning to ODI cricket alongside Rohit Sharma, Kohli delivered a spectacular unbitten 139 off just 88
02:39balls. His innings featured powerful stroke play as he and Gill put together a massive 151-run
02:47partnership. Kohli's century was also historic. During his innings, he crossed the landmark of 15,000
02:56ODI runs, becoming only the second player after Sachin Tendalkar to reach the milestone.
03:02He finished the match unbitten as India completed the chase with 50 balls to spare.
03:08India eventually reached 300 by 2 in 41.4 overs, winning the match by eight wickets and taking
03:15a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. The victory gave India plenty of positives,
03:22Gill's century as captain, Kohli's record-breaking return, Rohit's contribution at the top and
03:28Kuldeep's four-wicket haul. For West Indies, the strong opening partnership and
03:34Grieve's century offered encouragement, but their inability to convert that platform into
03:39a bigger total proved costly. With the 2027 ODI World Cup preparations already underway,
03:47India's opening performance provided a glimpse of the combination the team could build around
03:51its experienced stars and younger leadership.
