India, Feb. 6 -- BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar's decision to name Shubman Gill as the vice-captain over Hardik Pandya for the Champions Trophy raised quite a few eyebrows after his forgettable campaign in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia. But the India star vindicated the call with a brilliant knock of 87 against England in the opening ODI match of the three-game series on Thursday in Nagpur.

Unlike any of his previous 45 matches in the format, Gill surprisingly did not open for India at the VCA Stadium. With Virat Kohli out with a knee injury, Yashasvi Jaiswal was handed his debut cap, and was picked as the opener alongside captain Rohit Sharma. The move backfired with the left-hander getting dismissed for 15 off 22, bu...