India pull off last ball win over West Indies in first ODI
Port of Spain (PTI): Shikhar Dhawan made a well crafted 97 while Shubmam Gill made a classy 64 in his ODI comeback before India held their nerves to pull off a three-run win over the West Indies in the series opener here.
Openers Dhawan (97 off 99 balls) and Gill (64 off 53) shared an 119-run stand before the West Indies fought back to restrict India to 308 for seven.
The West Indies needed 15 off the final over for a record chase at Queens Park Oval but Mohammed Siraj was able to stop a rampaging Romario Shepherd (38 not out off 25).
At the top of order, Kyle Mayers (75 off 68) and Shamarh Brooks (46 off 61) raised West Indies' hopes with an 117-run stand for the second wicket before Brandon King (54 off 66) took the game deep. In the end, the West Indies fell short and ended at 305 for six.
Shardul Thakur had struck twice earlier in the chase to bring back India into the game as he removed the set duo of Mayers and Brooks.
The highly rated Mayers played a few spectacular strokes in his innings, including a one legged pull shot off Siraj. Skipper Nicholas Pooran (25 off 26) came in and punished Prasidh Krishna with two flat sixes over deep square leg and deep midwicket.
The hosts needed 60 off the last 90 balls and the 56-run stand between King and Akeal Hosein (32 not out off 32) kept India on the edge. However, Yuvzvendra Chahal came up with a timely breakthrough to make the job tougher for the West Indies.
The home team was kept in the chase by Shephered and Hosein whose valiant partnership in vain. Earlier, Gill, playing his first ODI since December 2020, played some sublime strokes while Dhawan took his time before changing gears.
Shreyas Iyer, who has had his troubles of late with the short ball, was back amongst the runs with a fluent 54 off 57 balls.
The opening duo of Gill and Dhawan provided the launchpad for a 350 plus total before the former was run out in the 18th over against the run of play.
Gill, one of the most watchable batters when in full flow, was very comfortable against the fast bowlers.
Gill hooked Alzarri Joseph for a six before he delighted the crowd with a perfectly placed punch off the back foot for a boundary. He was equally attractive playing the cover drives when the ball was pitched up.
His innings comprised six fours and couple of sixes. It took a brilliant direct hit from West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran to dismiss him. It was Gill's maiden ODI fifty in what was his fourth game.
Dhawan, who only plays one format and had a lean run in England, paced his innings well with Gill going strong at the other end. The southpaw collected 10 fours and three sixes. His go-to-shot was the slog sweep off left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie.
The other left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein impressed by getting the ball to turn sharply.
India were set for a 350-plus score but Dhawan's dismissal for the seventh time in the 90s led to a middle-order collapse with the visitors reduced to 252 for five from 213 for one.
Sanju Samson (12) squandered a good opportunity to make an impact while Suryakumar Yadav (13) fell to a loose shot.
Deepak Hooda (27) and Axar Patel (21) took India past 300 with a 42-run stand for the sixth wicket.
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Standoff between Delhi, Shimla police after arrest of 3 Youth Congress activists
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Shimla/New Delhi (PTI): In an ugly face-off, Himachal Pradesh police on Wednesday registered a kidnapping case against Delhi police personnel and "detained" their vehicles at the Shogi border near Shimla when they were heading back to the national capital with three Youth Congress members arrested in connection with the "shirtless protest" at the AI Summit.
"A case has been registered against 15-20 unknown people in plain clothes for forcibly taking three people staying in a resort in Rohru. They also took the CCTV installed in the resort with them and did not give any receipt," a statement issued by the Shimla police said.
The Delhi police had earlier on Wednesday said it had arrested three Youth Congress activists in connection with the February 20 protest at AI Impact Summit from a hotel in Chirgaon area of Rohru subdivision of Himachal's Shimla district.
Saurabh, Siddharth and Arbaz were apprehended by the Special Cell of Delhi Police. They were produced before a local court, which granted transit remand to enable the police to bring them to Delhi for further questioning, an official of the Delhi police said in the national capital.
Himachal Police sources claimed they intercepted three vehicles in Shimla and Solan districts and brought them back to Shimla as the Delhi police had not taken transit remand.
Both the Shimla police and the Delhi police accused each other of hampering the investigation.
The sources in Himachal Pradesh police claimed the team from Delhi carried out the operation in Shimla without informing the local police.
Acting on this, Himachal Pradesh police intercepted three vehicles carrying the accused -- who are reportedly not residents of Himachal Pradesh -- and Delhi Police personnel.
Two vehicles were stopped in Shimla, while the third was intercepted near Dharampur in Solan district. Around 20 people, including police personnel, were detained, the source said.
The Delhi police personnel again tried to leave for the national capital but were intercepted at Shogi border on Wednesday night on the road to Chandigarh and not allowed to leave.
In a video that appeared from the Shogi border in the suburbs of Shimla city, the Delhi police officers were heard saying that they had arrested three people in the morning in connection with an FIR registered on February 20.
VIDEO | Shimla: A jurisdiction dispute has erupted after the Delhi Police detained three Youth Congress workers in connection with an AI Summit protest pic.twitter.com/H7o7eaYOb8
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 25, 2026
"We have to produce the accused arrested at 5 am today in the court in 24 hours, and you have stopped us after registering an FIR at 8 pm," an officer of the Delhi police said.
However, the Shimla police officers maintained that a case of abduction has been registered and the Delhi police is hampering the investigation.
They alleged that the Delhi police carried out an illegal operation at Rohru without informing the local police and no papers of arrest were shown.
"I asked you for a legal document in the morning, but neither have you shown any document nor the FIR number and nor have you taken the transit remand," the officer of Shimla police is heard saying.
The "shirtless" protest at Bharat Mandapam on February 20 had triggered a major security response, with police earlier invoking charges including rioting and promoting enmity under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Indian Youth Congress president Uday Bhanu Chib and former national spokesperson Bhudev Sharma were arrested in connection with the case on Tuesday. Both were produced before a Delhi court and remanded to police custody for interrogation.
According to the Delhi police, a total of 11 people have been arrested so far.
Earlier, on Saturday midnight, Delhi Police had raided Himachal Sadan in the national capital amid reports that Youth Congress workers who had participated in the protest were provided accommodation there.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had termed the action "unfortunate and against constitutional procedure".
A Delhi court on Wednesday extended by four days the police custody of five of the arrested in the case.
Arguing that the incident was not spontaneous but executed after prior planning, the Delhi police said that the initial probe revealed structured allocation of roles, concealment tactics and coordinated post-incident movement.
It, however, said that the entire conspiracy, including its hierarchy, funding and inter-state coordination, needed to be unearthed.
Chief Judicial Magistrate Mridul Gupta extended the custodial interrogation of the accused -- Krishna Hari, national secretary of the Youth Congress from Bihar; Kundan Yadav, state general secretary of Bihar; Ajay Kumar Singh, state vice-president of eastern Uttar Pradesh; and Narasimha Yadav, national coordinator of IYC from Telangana.
Meanwhile, the Delhi police on Wednesday denied permission to the Delhi Youth Congress to hold a dharna at Jantar Mantar in national capital on February 26, citing short notice and prevailing law and order concerns.
The Delhi Youth Congress had called the dharna on Thursday against the police action on IYC members who had taken part in the February 20 protest.
