New Delhi, Sept. 30 -- Shubman Gill worked Vitel Lawes into the on side at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, jogged the first few steps, then jumped and punched the air. Helmet off. Bat raised. That was 200 off 117 balls, the fastest double hundred in men's ODI cricket, and the shot that broke Ishan Kishan's 126-ball mark from Chattogram in 2022. Ruturaj Gaikwad reached him first. The dressing room was already on its feet.

The celebration was special because it was controlled. Gill rested the helmet on the handle and lifted it to his teammates and the Guwahati crowd, the picture of a captain who had treated 406 as a target he expected to hunt down.

West Indies had posted their highest ODI total, 405.7, with centuries from John Campbell, Shai H...