India edge past West Indies in high-scoring thriller as Arshdeep Singh headlines the show
Team India returned to winning ways as they beat West Indies in another high-scoring encounter to goup 2-1 in the ongoing T20I series. Indore stayed witness to blistering fireworks from both sets of batters as 432 runs were scored collectively.
Winning the toss, West Indies opted to bowl first, well aware of the fact that the onset of dew will come as a blessing for the batters. India made two tweaks to the side that took the yard in Jharkhand with Nitish Kumar Reddy and Prince Yadav coming in for Shivam Dube and Kuldeep Yadav.
India lost Sanju Samson (3) early in the innings as Shamar Joseph got the better of him. However, it was Abhishek Sharma who came out blasting on all cylinders, taking over the reins of the powerplay. Sharma was complemented well by Ishan Kishan as the two added 108 runs for the second wicket from just 40 balls.
Sharma racked up 2000 T20I runs while hammering 69 off just 30 balls. He rocked six fours and five sixes, scoring at a rate of 230. After a strong start, India had a sudden hiccup in the center as they four wickets in quick succession with Ishan Kishan (37), Shreyas Iyer (1), Sharma and Naman Dhir (10) heading back to the pavilion.
Kishan’s 18-ball-37 saw him smiting six fours and a six while smashing at a strike rate of 205.56. With India wobbling after making merry early on, they needed a strong stand to steady the ship. Nitish Kumar Reddy chipped in with a handy and breezy knock as he scored 21 off 14 while he had support from Axar Patel who scored 20 off the identical number of deliveries.
Despite West Indies chipping away at the wickets, India kept their foot on the pedal as they kept on attacking every Windies bowler. The Men in Blue were eventually bowled out on the final ball of the innings, totting up a staggering 223 on the board. Of course, after India were beaten in the last game while defending 249, there were thoughts of whether the Indian bowlers could protect a lower number on the board.
However, even before West Indies could get started, Arshdeep Singh delivered a smashing blow to the visitors’ chasing hopes as he sneaked through the defences of Shai Hope (5). West Indies found resilience through Kamil Pooran (42) and Shimron Hetmyer (43). Unfortunately, the numbers on the board played its trick and Hetmyer’s attempt at swinging against Naman Dhir saw his furniture rattled.
Axar Patel struck next, claiming the prized scalp of Rovman Powell (5) while Dhir doubled his tally in short succession, bagging the wicket of Pooran. Wobbling at 105/4, West Indies needed some time to steady the ship and that proved to be a pivotal phase of the game. Sherfane Rutherford (32) and Quentin Sampson (21) did manage to put up a strong stand of 46 runs but the pressure of the asking rate somehow left the visitors seeking for more.
Nitish Kumar Reddy claimed Sampson’s wicket to break the partnership while Arshdeep Singh’s double whammy sent Keemo Paul (10) and Rutherford packing. Shamar Springer hammered 35 off just 11 balls, fuelling the faint Caribbean hopes but it was too late by then. India won the game by 14 runs.
Arshdeep Singh was the pick of the Indian lot with figures of 3/44 while Naman Dhir claimed a brace too, despite being expensive. Arshdeep bagged the Player of the Match award for his effective bowling spell while also adding crucial runs in the tail.
