224/1 (28.4)
CR : 7.81
218/10 (44.2)
CR : 4.92
India won by 9 wickets 🏆
Player of the Match
Prasidh Krishna
5/23
Best All-round Performance: Rohit Sharma (79 runs & 3 catches)
Striker of the Match: Yashasvi Jaiswal (110*)
Best Fielder Award: Shubman Gill
Player of the Match: Prasidh Krishna
Prasidh Krishna (POTM): "(On how his body is feeling?) Yeah, I just wanted to avoid overdoing things, so my body feels good. I had a bit of a break after the bowling innings, and it was great to see the way the batters went about their job. I'm really happy for the team.
(On his preparation) I think it's mainly about trying to hit the lengths that we discuss as a team and executing our plans more consistently. Preparation-wise, I spend a lot of time thinking about the game—what the conditions are like, what I want to do, and how I want to approach different situations. It's really about doing the homework, and I think that's helped me a lot.
(On adjusting from IPL to international cricket) Honestly, it's very helpful to be around top-quality bowlers. You keep learning from each other all the time. There's always healthy competition during net sessions, and that pushes everyone to improve. When you have the right group around you, you're constantly motivating each other to get better. I think that's definitely paid off.
(Thought process before picking the fifth wicket) Yes, that thought did cross my mind for a moment. But then I reminded myself that there was still a lot of the game left to play. Later, when I came back and looked at it, of course, I would have been happier with five wickets than four. But even if I didn't get that fifth wicket, as long as we ended up on the winning side, that's what matters most. So I'm happy with the result."
(On his preparation) I think it's mainly about trying to hit the lengths that we discuss as a team and executing our plans more consistently. Preparation-wise, I spend a lot of time thinking about the game—what the conditions are like, what I want to do, and how I want to approach different situations. It's really about doing the homework, and I think that's helped me a lot.
(On adjusting from IPL to international cricket) Honestly, it's very helpful to be around top-quality bowlers. You keep learning from each other all the time. There's always healthy competition during net sessions, and that pushes everyone to improve. When you have the right group around you, you're constantly motivating each other to get better. I think that's definitely paid off.
(Thought process before picking the fifth wicket) Yes, that thought did cross my mind for a moment. But then I reminded myself that there was still a lot of the game left to play. Later, when I came back and looked at it, of course, I would have been happier with five wickets than four. But even if I didn't get that fifth wicket, as long as we ended up on the winning side, that's what matters most. So I'm happy with the result."
Player of the Series: Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill (POTS and India Captain): "(On the new spell by Krishna and Brar) Absolutely. The first spell from Gurnoor Brar and Prasidh Krishna was excellent to watch. Generating that kind of pace in those conditions was not easy at all, but they kept putting in the effort and continued to push themselves throughout.
(Were you tempted to bowl them more in the first spell?) Definitely. As a captain, you're always tempted to do that. But considering the weather and the conditions, I checked with them to see if they wanted to bowl another over. They were pretty exhausted, so we had to manage their workload accordingly.
(How many boxes tick) A lot of them, definitely. We spoke about maintaining intensity during the middle overs, and one of our key goals was finding ways to keep creating opportunities as a bowling unit during that phase of the innings. As a batting group, we also discussed how we could continue pushing for those extra runs in the middle overs. I think we've managed to tick a lot of those boxes during the series, which is very pleasing.
(On the upcoming matches) We're heading to England next, and the conditions there should be somewhat similar to what we might encounter in South Africa. Not exactly the same, but close enough to provide valuable preparation. We'll be looking at the combinations we want to play there, and hopefully we'll have all our players fit and available. It's going to be another important series for us."
(Were you tempted to bowl them more in the first spell?) Definitely. As a captain, you're always tempted to do that. But considering the weather and the conditions, I checked with them to see if they wanted to bowl another over. They were pretty exhausted, so we had to manage their workload accordingly.
(How many boxes tick) A lot of them, definitely. We spoke about maintaining intensity during the middle overs, and one of our key goals was finding ways to keep creating opportunities as a bowling unit during that phase of the innings. As a batting group, we also discussed how we could continue pushing for those extra runs in the middle overs. I think we've managed to tick a lot of those boxes during the series, which is very pleasing.
(On the upcoming matches) We're heading to England next, and the conditions there should be somewhat similar to what we might encounter in South Africa. Not exactly the same, but close enough to provide valuable preparation. We'll be looking at the combinations we want to play there, and hopefully we'll have all our players fit and available. It's going to be another important series for us."
Most Player of the Series Awards for India in ODIs:
14 - Sachin Tendulkar
11 - Virat Kohli
7 - Yuvraj Singh
6 - Sourav Ganguly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Rohit Sharma
5 - Shubman Gill*
14 - Sachin Tendulkar
11 - Virat Kohli
7 - Yuvraj Singh
6 - Sourav Ganguly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Rohit Sharma
5 - Shubman Gill*
Shubman Gill collects the winner's trophy from the BCCI President, Mithun Manhas, before the players join him to pose for the photographs. Harsh Dubey and Gurnoor Brar have their moment with the silverware in their hands.
That is it from this series! India steamrolling Afghanistan in the one-off Test and in the three-match ODI series. Comfortable series win for the Shubman Gill-led side. Afghanistan need to improve a lot if they are to give a fight to teams like India. Plenty of positives and new talents from this home series. Up next for India will be a white-ball tour to Ireland and England, starting in a week's time.
However, cricketing action at Crickxo doesn't stop! Multiple franchise leagues, the Women's T20 World Cup, international series and much more await us. For now, this is me, AkshayaKrishna Polya, signing off on behalf of my co-commentator Mohammad Anab, scorer Yogesh Kumar and statistician Aman. We will meet again. Until then, its cheers!
However, cricketing action at Crickxo doesn't stop! Multiple franchise leagues, the Women's T20 World Cup, international series and much more await us. For now, this is me, AkshayaKrishna Polya, signing off on behalf of my co-commentator Mohammad Anab, scorer Yogesh Kumar and statistician Aman. We will meet again. Until then, its cheers!