Prateek Tanmay
After eight hours of incessant rain, the skies cleared over Dharamsala as the majestic Dhauladhar slowly revealed itself from behind sooty grey clouds. It allowed a 25-overs-a-side game in which the hosts registered a seven-wicket win with 13 balls to spare, a bit of a canter at the end, despite a 51-ball 102 from Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
The curtailed game eased India’s white-ball core, regrouping after an exhaustive IPL season. A target of 195, could have been tricky but they were steered home by captain Shubman Gill (84 not out).
Azmatullah Omarzai sprayed wides on either side, conceded five extras and overstepped the popping crease before Rohit Sharma could even get a feel of the ball. When it eventually arrived, it pinged into his right wrist.
Picture-Perfect 🙌#TeamIndia wrap a comprehensive victory by 7️⃣ wickets in Dharamshala ✅
They lead the #INDvAFG ODI series by 1️⃣-0️⃣ 👌
Scorecard ▶️ @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/RNy13a0PHX
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 13, 2026
The former skipper had cut a lone figure for most of the evening, fielding at long-on and backward point after Gill opted to bowl first in glistening conditions. Returning to the ODI fold after five months, questions hung over the 39-year-old, his relevance and recovery from a recent hamstring injury probed every minute.
The confidence appeared shaken, and the pull-shot maestro missed out on a shortish free hit altogether. A lot of hand-wringing later, he stayed on. The pull connected next time, sending Omarzai over the mid-wicket fence. Gill played out the next two overs before Rohit exited.
Blinded by bowler Allah Ghazanfar in front of him, Gill turned down a single with Rohit half-way down the pitch. The captain signalled a u-turn, but it wa too late for Rohit to recover.
After an edgy start against incoming deliveries from the seamers, Gill kicked into overdrive, latching onto looseners from his IPL teammate Rashid Khan and veteran offie Mohammad Nabi with two sixes and three fours in successive overs. A quickfire 34 from wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan settled the contest to a great degree.
Sublime ball-striking 👌💥
🎥 Easy on the eye shots from Captain Shubman Gill and KL Rahul en route to a fine victory 👏
Updates ▶️ #TeamIndia | #INDvAFG | @IDFCFIRSTBank | @ShubmanGill | @klrahul pic.twitter.com/hXHuxGC5yL
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 13, 2026
With a series of jabs and cuts, Gill soon marched past 3,000 ODI runs – the quickest Indian to the mark – and saw off proceedings alongside a flawless KL Rahul (39* off 19).
Brar takes flight
Gill handed out ODI caps to seamer Gurnoor Brar and left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, and soon a swinging full-toss from the pacer caught Ibrahim Zadran by surprise. It was Zadran’s first ball of the series after missing the one-off Test in New Chandigarh.
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Gurbaz cut and charged Arshdeep Singh in the first over, dispatching a four through backward point and a six over the sightscreen.
Brar’s strengths are height and bounce, but he operated in contrast to the apparent strengths that fast-tracked his debut. The son of a Punjab Police ASI, Brar was gifted with the basketball genes of his father. He instead devoured the menacing art of Dale Steyn on YouTube for hours – the booming outswingers, outright pace and the gift of lengths – the entire package.
The stuff dreams are made of 🌟
🎥 Gurnoor Brar strikes in his very first over in international cricket ☝️
Updates ▶️ #TeamIndia | #INDvAFG | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/x7qIkDWPZr
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 13, 2026
When the ball finally hit the right length, Zadran would taste why India could have considerable time on their hands honing the 6’5” pacer. The ball swerved away late, the leading edge off Zadran’s drive finding Gill, Brar’s Punjab statemate and captain, at mid-off.
He cranked up the speed gun effortlessly – seven of his first nine deliveries zoomed over 146 kph – exhibiting nous to steer away from his innate hit-the-deck traits. After an impressive three-over burst, Brar (3/23) capped off his special evening by putting a full-stop on Afghanistan, nipping the last two wickets before the final delivery of the innings.
Rocket Gurbaz
Arshdeep had set Afghanistan back at the start, trapping Sediqullah Atal and Rahmat Shah in quick succession within the first five overs.
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Gurbaz, however, pressed on despite a visible hamstring concern. Under spotless skies, the opener rained boundaries, smashing 10 of them between overs 7-11 taking on a wayward Prasidh Krishna and debutant Dubey.
Sixes with a pick-up flick off Krishna and a lofted straight drive against Nitish Kumar Reddy were the standout shots when Gurbaz doubled his 28-ball fifty within the next 20 deliveries – a dazzling 48-ball ton the fastest-ever by an Afghan batter.
Gurbaz’s (102) automated assault off the shorter lengths was eventually halted by Nitish, whose inswinging yorker uprooted his middle stump and with it, Afghanistan’s momentum.
Brief Scores: Afghanistan 194 all out in 24.5 overs (Gurbaz 102; Brar 3/23, Dubey 3/47) lost to India 195 for three in 22.5 overs (Gill 84 not out, Rahul 39 not out) by seven wickets
