Team India showed immense dominance in the series opener of the ongoing three-match T20I series beating five Windies by wickets in a close fixture at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata. The Indian pacers provided the much-needed following Rohit Sharma’s decision to bowl first. Umesh Yadav drew the first blood dismissing Dinesh Ramdin in third over. Shai Hope was soon to follow with a brilliant piece of effort in the field from Manish Pandey and KL Rahul.
India continued taking wickets in regular intervals as none of the Windies batsmen offered any resistance. Shimron Hetmyer, who looked in good touch in the ODIs was dismissed by Jasprit Bumrah which increased the troubles of the visiting team. Reeling at 28 for three in 4.4 overs, debutant Krunal Pandya announced his arrival dismissing the dangerous looking Keiron Pollard.
After that, it was a Kuldeep Yadav show, who finished the game with a three-wicket haul and put Windies on backfoot before Fabien Allen’s late contribution helped them go past the 100-run mark. With 110 runs to chase, it was an easy looking target considering India’s heavyweight batting line-up, the Windies had a different plan as they struck in the first over to halt India’s run chase as Oshane Thomas had Rohit Sharma edged to Ramdin. Thomas continued his good form to rattle Shikhar Dhawan’s timber to put India on 16 for two within three overs.
WATCH – Dinesh Karthik Smashed Kieron Pollard Left, Right, and Center
However, Dinesh Karthik and Manish Pandey shared a crucial stand to almost steer India home. Although Pandey (19) departed Krunal Pandya played a good hand to see off the target as he score 21 off just 9 deliveries.
Rohit Sharma lauded the bowlers for their brilliant show and also made a special mention about debutant Krunal Pandya. He said, “Exceptional performance with the ball. Was a lot on offer for the seamers. Even with spinners, it wasn’t easy. Overall there was little bit for every department. To start with, we bowled well – good areas. Used the conditions perfectly. Knew the chase wasn’t going to be easy. Hopefully we can learn from these mistakes. Oshane Thomas is a really exciting talent. If he bowls in good areas, it’s not going to be easy for batsmen to counter it.”
WATCH – Windies Loses A Wicket With A Huge Blunder
During the post-match press-conference, Sharma further added, “The advantage of height gives him that extra edge. Wish him the best in the future but not against us. Very exciting talents again – Krunal and Khaleel. Krunal – I’ve seen him closely in last two-three years for MI. When he came into bowl, Pollard was batting. He was the one who wanted to bowl against him. These guys are ready to take those challenges. Exciting for the captain when you see that. If they continue to work on their skills, India’s going to benefit for sure.”
