Windies v India, 2nd ODI - India Player Ratings

After a disappointing defeat against Pakistan in the final encounter of ICC Champions Trophy, the Blue ship headed towards west. They took on Windies, as they are now called, at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad. The current Windian team is not one to be feared of and their performance in the match promised nothing at all.

Captain Jason Holder won the toss and asked Virat Kohli & Co. to bat first. In a rain-curtailed match, each team got 43 overs to bat. India scored a mammoth 310, owing to scintillating knocks from the top 3. Windies’ batters had no answers in front of Indian bowlers as they could manage only 205 runs. Wicketkeeper Shai Hope was the only hope for the Windies, as they lost the match by 105 runs.

1. Ajinkya Rahane – 9.5/10

Rahane got a chance to feature in the playing XI of India as opener Rohit Sharma is not featuring in their roster for this series. In his usual way, the Mumbaikar began on a calm and composed note and then took the charge on the erratic Windian bowlers.

He scored a well-sculptured 103 runs at almost a run-a-ball strike rate. Fans witnessed 10 boundaries and 2 sixes from his bat, as he made sure that he sticks on to the wicket at one end.  

2. Shikhar Dhawan – 8/10

The ‘Gabbar Singh’ of the Indian team, Dhawan carried his amazing run of form of Champions Trophy into the on-going series as well. Alongside Rahane, Dhawan built a massive 114 runs first-wicket partnership. He scored 63 runs in 59 balls, out of which 40 were scored off fours. After his dismissal, skipper Kohli led the charge. But is was Dhawan who built a concrete foundation for the rest of the batters to thrive on.

3. Virat Kohli – 9/10

After the resignation of former Indian head coach Anil Kumble and a poor show at Champions Trophy’s final, the Delhi lad has been at the receiving end of all controversies. But Kohli is only focused on his job, which translated in his innings last night. With a composed Rahane at one end, Kohli was taking the bowlers for a fun ride at the other. He scored 87 runs off just 66 deliveries, 24 of which came from sixes.

4. Hardik Pandya – 6/10

As termed by Virender Sehwag, the tragic hero of Champions Trophy’s final ‘Kung fu Pandya’ didn’t have an impressive outing with the bat as he scored only 4 runs before being dismissed cheaply. Coming back with the ball, he was economical as he gave just 32 runs in his 9 overs. Though he could not take a wicket, with an economy rate of under 4, he was India’s 2nd most economical bowler in the match.

5. Yuvraj Singh – 4/10

Yuvraj’s struggle continues amidst all the controversies. Many cricket enthusiasts are questioning Yuvraj’s fitness, as the Punjab lad failed on impress in the match against Windies. With the bat, he scored only 14 runs. For a change, Kohli handed him the ball to have a go at Windian batters. In his 5 overs, Yuvi gave 25 runs but couldn’t get a wicket.

6. MS Dhoni – 3/10

The former Indian skipper came out to bat in the 39th over. Dhoni faced only 13 balls but did not quite pull off a fiery inning. A run-a-ball 13 was all he could manage against the Windian bowling that is devoid of any star players. Only one boundary came off his bat from 13 deliveries.

7. Kedar Jadhav – 7/10

When Kedar walked into bat after Kohli’s dismissal, only 10 balls were left of the innings. But unlike his senior at the other end, Jadhav managed to get the big shots going. He scored as many runs as Dhoni, by consuming 7 balls less. His quickfire knock comprises of a couple of boundaries which helped India cross the 300-run mark.

8. Bhuvneshwar Kumar – 9.5/10

Just like Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar also carried his superb run of form from Champions Trophy into this series. He was the go-to man for Kohli in the last game as well. Talk about economical bowling, and Kumar’s numbers define that as the swing bowler gave away just 9 runs, at less than 2 runs per over. Alongside that, he dismissed 2 of Windies’ batters from the top 3.

9. Ravichandran Ashwin – 5/10

Ashwin was struggling in English conditions, as the pitches, there were not conducive to spin bowling. He was not quite impressive Sunday as well. In his 9 overs, he gave away 47 runs at an economy rate of over 5 runs per over. He managed to pick up Jonathan Carter’s wicket.

10. Kuldeep Yadav – 9/10

The one-of-a-kind chinaman spinner of India was the topic of discussion after BCCI released the squad list for the recently concluded Champions Trophy. On Sunday, he once again showed why he has been in the talks since his U19 days. Yadav picked up 3 wickets after bowling 9 overs in what was literally his bowling debut in ODIs. Though he is residing on the expensive side conceding 50 runs in 9 overs, he was the highest wicket-taker for India in the game.

11. Umesh Yadav – 3/10

Yadav was found as ‘excess’ in Champions Trophy as Virat went with Bumrah and Bhuvi as his 2 fast bowlers. But with Bumrah rested for the on-going series, Umesh got a chance to feature in the playing XI. But he didn’t quite capitalise on the opportunity, as he failed to take any wicket after bowling 36 deliveries. In addition to it, he gave away 36 runs to be the most expensive bowler for India in the match.