By changing the rules of limited-overs cricket, India and the West Indies made a peaceful place a very special theater for statistical carnage.

There are cricket matches, and there are historic anomalies that make us reach for a new rulebook, with the old one tossed out the nearest window.

Set in the verdant landscape of Guwahati, the second One Day encounter between India and the West Indies began as a competitive match and quickly turned into an unmatched carnival of clean hitting, record-setting feats and batting of the highest order. When the dust had settled on a match that produced an astronomical 811 runs, the laws of cricket had been rewritten ball by ball.

West Indies' Statement of Intent for India

The foundations were laid for a towering statement of intent from a resilient and explosive West Indian batting unit. Shai Hope's 104, his 20th ODI century, propelled him past Brian Lara on the all-time Caribbean list, and only Chris Gayle in total, in a match that saw him and his new batting colleagues reach three figures for the first time in the West Indies' ODI history, and the sixth time overall in men's ODIs.

And so, inspired by the stand between Amir Jangoo and Hope and John Campbell, the visitors crossed the 400-run threshold in the format for the very first time, and joined an exclusive club of Full Members.

The Hitman Show

Chasing a huge total of 406, India needed something special at the start, and they got it with the openers.

At the start of the innings, Rohit Sharma etched his name into the history books once more, becoming the seventh batter and only the second Indian to pass 12,000 career ODI runs, achieving the feat in an incredible 282 innings, and only bettered by Virat Kohli.

Then, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill laid the foundations for an extraordinary chase, combining for the highest-ever opening stand in a run-chase, with 255 runs between them.

And when both openers joined the three West Indians on three figures, the match became a record-breaker, with a world first achieved – an ODI with five individual centuries.

Shubman Gill's Record-Shredding Masterclass

While the records for the team were extraordinary, Shubman Gill was in a league of his own, hitting a performance for the ages with a masterclass script worthy of science fiction.

Captaincy could well become a millstone around the neck of many a player, but not Shubman Gill. He blasted his way to 150 from 89 balls – the fastest 150 by an Indian, and the ninth fastest globally.

But he wasn't finished, as Gill launched into overdrive and rattled off another 73 runs off 117 balls to complete the fastest double-century in ODI history.

Gill's 223 not out was a batting tour-de-force that will live long in the memory, and will take a while to be surpassed given it:

Bettered the previous record for the highest individual score in an ODI chase, set by Glenn Maxwell with his 201 not out

Set a new record for the highest captain's score in men's ODIs, passing Virender Sehwag's remarkable 219

Was the third-highest individual score in ODI history, behind only Rohit Sharma's 264, and Martin Guptill's 237.

Chasing Down History

Gill wasn't the only man chasing records, as India reached 300 in an astonishing 29.1 overs, the fastest by any team in ODI history, while equaling England's record for the fastest team to 43 overs, completing 400 runs.

India also raced past the 370-mark with the highest score posted by any team at that point in an ODI innings, and reached their target with 39 balls and eight wickets remaining to complete the second-highest successful run chase in ODI history, only eclipsed by South Africa's famous 435-run chase against Australia in 2006.

India also recorded their ninth total of 400-plus in ODIs, overtaking South Africa for the most by any team.

When the final boundary was struck in Guwahati, it was not just a win for the home supporters, but also a statement of intent from the game's new philosophy of the era, where scores once thought unachievable are merely challenges for the modern game to overcome.