Gill stands tall but Bangladesh breakthroughs keep contest alive

Chasing 229, India made a strong start before Bangladesh's bowlers struck back to keep the contest in the balance.

Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill raced to 51 without loss in eight overs, with Rohit playing fluently and bringing up his 11,000th ODI run—the second-fastest to do so after Virat Kohli. The Indian captain looked in ominous touch, driving Mustafizur Rahman for two boundaries to bring up the fifty-run opening stand.

However, Bangladesh found a crucial breakthrough in the final over of the powerplay when Taskin Ahmed dismissed Rohit for 41 off 36 balls, the Indian skipper mistiming a shot to Rishad Hossain at cover point.

Gill and Kohli then steadied the innings with a cautious 22-run stand, but Kohli struggled for fluency before falling for 22 off 38 balls, edging a Rishad leg-break to Soumya Sarkar at backward point. Shreyas Iyer's stay was brief, as Mustafizur's well-disguised cutter induced a mistimed loft, with Najmul Hossain Shanto taking a simple catch at mid-off. Iyer's departure for 15 left India at 134 for 3 in 28 overs.

India promoted Axar Patel to number five in an attempt to maintain a left-right combination, but the move backfired. The all-rounder, trying to up the scoring rate, gifted a return catch to Rishad after making just 8 off 12 balls. At 144 for 4 in the 31st over, India still needed 85 runs from 119 balls.

Gill remained the key, anchoring the chase with his fourth consecutive fifty-plus score against Bangladesh. He struck five boundaries and a six, holding one end firm as wickets continued to fall. KL Rahul joined him at the crease with India still requiring 84 runs.

A missed run-out chance added to Bangladesh's frustration when Gill called for a risky single before hesitating, leaving Iyer stranded. However, Shanto's throw missed the stumps, and Mustafizur failed to collect cleanly.

At the time of writing, India were 158 for 4 in 34 overs, with Gill unbeaten on 65 off 90 balls and Rahul on 5 off 11.