Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel smashed half-centuries as India defeated England by four wickets in the opening one-day international on Thursday and took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series that is a warmup for the Champions Trophy.

India went into the match without the talismanic Virat Kohli, who was unavailable because of a sore right knee, and at that juncture losing Yashasvi Jaiswal (15) and Rohit Sharma (2) cheaply was a recipe for disaster. But Gill batted sensibly and with Iyer playing a counter-attacking innings, helped India to safety.

Shubman Gill has given a positive update on Kohli, saying the 37-year-old will definitely be available for the 2nd ODI which is to be played at the Barabati Stadium in Odisha on February 9.

Chasing a below 250 score, Gill anchored the innings, forging key partnerships with Iyer and Axar that became the backbone of India's chase

India wrapped up a dominant victory in the opening match of the One Day International series against England, as Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja starred.

Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer helped India chase down 249 runs in just 39 overs. Axar Patel also played a solid knock with the bat to help India win the game. Earlier, Harshit Rana and Ravindra Jadeja picked up three wickets each to set the tone with the ball.

Debutant Harshit Rana grabbed three wickets and vice-captain Shubman Gill hit 87 runs off 96 balls for India to beat England by four wickets in the first one-day international at VCA Stadium on Thursday.

India vice-captain Shubman Gill on Thursday opened up on his stunning fifty against England in the first ODI match of the series and said that his plan was not going too much on the back foot.Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer's mouthwatering fifties helped India to clinch a four-wicket triumph over England in the first ODI match of the series at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur

England won the toss in the first ODI of the three-match series and opted to bat first. The two openers started off quite positively. The sixth over of the innings, ODI debutant 's third, was plundered for 26 runs as England' tally doubled from 26 to 52.