Windies v India, 2nd ODI: Who Said What

India has been surrounded with a lot of negativity since the past week or two. It has been a roller-coaster ride for some while others are just coping up with the void. The win over the men in maroon yesterday was welcomed by the Indian players. They had something to cheer after a long time.

India was put into bat by Jason Holder and co and the decision proved wrong. The game was reduced to 43 overs and that might have played with Holder’s mind before choosing to bowl first. Rahane and Dhawan made light work of Windies bowling attack. Dhawan came off aggressively while Rahane was playing the waiting game. After Dhawan’s dismissal, Rahane took the matter into his own hands.

Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli added 97 runs in 94 deliveries making the bowlers pay for their ordinary bowling. The former reached his 3rd ODI century in 101 balls and the latter was taking the game to the bowlers. This partnership and then that last over from Jason Holder made sure India reached 310 in their 43 overs. Windies never looked like giving India a fight. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar made it worse for them.

He bowled a superb first over to take out Powell and it went all south since then. Shai Hope dug in and scored a wonderful 81 from 88 but Kuldeep Yadav accounted for his wicket. The debutant was on a roll in as he picked up three wickets in his spell and made sure India earned an easy win over the lacklustre Windies.

Virat Kohli was in a joyous mood after the match and praised Rahane and Yadav for their performances. He said that all the batters did well including himself and strung some good partnerships in the end as well. He lauded the bench strength the Indian team has got.

Virat Kohli said:

“It was a complete performance again, the partnership between Ajinkya and Shikhar was outstanding, and myself at the back end, with Yuvi, MS and Kedar chipping in. Early wickets for Bhuvi, and really happy for Kuldeep as well bowling for the first time and taking three wickets. The bench strength has always been right up there for us.”

“Jinks couldn’t get a game in the Champions Trophy, unfortunately, but shows his mental strength, steps in and scores runs. We’ll sit down and decide as a team about changes that can be made. We’ll go to Antigua and regroup, and that’s a possibility as well, give a few guys an opportunity.”

Rahane batted beautifully for his team and scored a wonderful century. He also stated that lack of opportunity in the Champions Trophy helped him play with vigor in this game. Praising his partner’s form and their understanding Rahane said that the wicket was damp and so time on the wicket was needed for a batsman to play.

Ajinky Rahane said:

“Really happy with the way I played today, even in the first game. Didn’t get an opportunity in the Champions Trophy, and I was hungry. It’s lovely to open with Shikhar. He’s in great form, we understand each other’s game really well. We complement each other. The wicket was slightly damp initially. We wanted to take our time initially, as well as play our shots,”