Perth, Australia – A dominant Australian side defeated India by 7 wickets in the first ODI at Optus Stadium, giving Shubman Gill a bitter start to his ODI captaincy career. The match, marred by multiple rain interruptions, was reduced to 26 overs per side, but the result was a convincing victory for the home team.
Australia's win was set up by a fiery spell from Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood, who ripped through India's top order. India's batting performance was nothing short of a disaster, with Gill, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli all failing to make an impact. Rohit Sharma, playing his 500th international match, was dismissed for 8, while Kohli, returning to the ODI format for the first time since March, fell for a duck. Gill, the new ODI captain, also had a forgettable outing, scoring just 10 runs. Shreyas Iyer didn't fare much better, adding only 11 runs to the total. India slumped to 45/4 at one stage, recording their lowest powerplay score since 2023.
KL Rahul (38) and Axar Patel (31) offered some resistance in the middle order, while debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy contributed a late cameo of 19 not out to push India's total to 136/9. However, it was never going to be enough against a strong Australian batting lineup.
In response, Australia chased down the revised target of 131 with ease. Travis Head was dismissed early by Arshdeep Singh for 8 runs. However, Josh Philippe's quickfire 37 and an unbeaten 46 from Mitchell Marsh guided Australia to victory. Matt Renshaw also remained not out on 21, sealing the win for the Australians.
This defeat marked India's first loss in ODIs in 2025, ending their eight-match winning streak. It also highlighted the challenges Gill faces as he takes on the ODI captaincy, especially with senior players like Rohit and Kohli in the team. While Axar Patel has expressed confidence in Gill's leadership abilities, the young captain needs to establish his authority and lead from the front.
The Australian bowlers exploited the pace and bounce of the Optus Stadium pitch, while the Indian batsmen struggled to adjust after training for only three days in Australia. The frequent rain interruptions also disrupted India's rhythm.
Despite the loss, Gill remained optimistic, acknowledging the tough start but also highlighting the positives, particularly the fight shown by the team to take the game deep while defending a low total. As India look to bounce back in the second ODI in Adelaide on October 23, they will need their star batsmen to fire and their bowlers to find a way to contain the aggressive Australian batting lineup.
