Windies vs India, 2nd T20I – Who Said What

Another not so comprehensive performance from India, but once again, Virat Kohli and his men ensured they got the job done comfortably. Even on a day when their performance was not at their best, the bowlers ensured there was a significant difference between both sides.

Batting first, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan gave a decent start for the Indians. The pitch once again wasn’t at its best for batting but the duo has enough experience to battle out the adversity. They added 67 runs in 47 deliveries before Dhawan was dismissed by Keemo Paul. Rohit then added another crucial partnership with Virat Kohli for the second wicket.

Rohit completed his half-century and in an attempt to up the ante, he was dismissed after a well-compiled 67 off 51 balls. Rishabh Pant, Virat Kohli and Manish Pandey then fell in quick succession, which stemmed the flow of runs towards the end. Krunal Pandya got a couple of sixes in the final two overs and the late flourish helped India pile up 167 runs batting first.

Powell fights but no resistance from the rest

Just the way he did in the previous game, Bhuvneshwar Kumar got a wicket in his first over and once again, it was Evin Lewis at the receiving end. Washington Sundar then chipped in with the wicket of Sunil Narine, which saw the Windies register just 8 runs in the first 4 overs. Nicholas Pooran was struggling to time the ball, but Rovman Powell was having an outstanding day.

Pooran kept batting around the big hits from the willow of Powell. The 26-year-old hit some clean blows off Navdeep Saini and Khaleel Ahmed. The duo stitched a brilliant 76-run partnership for the third wicket before Krunal Pandya struck with a bolt of double lightning in the 14th over. He dismissed both Pooran and Powell in that over and broke their backbone.

Rain interrupted a couple of overs later and play was no longer possible. At 15.3 overs, Windies could only muster 98 runs for the loss of 4 wickets, leading to them falling 22 runs short of the D/L par score. India was adjudged winners and this helped them garner an unassailable 2-0 lead.

Here’s what the players and the captains had to say

Carlos Brathwaite

Really don’t think it went wrong. Didn’t have the start with the ball we wanted but we pulled it back. Had a solid base with the bat, backed ourselves to get 70 off 26 even though it’s a difficult task. Well played by Rovman.

Communication with senior guys, the target we had, wanted Pollard to come in later. Our lineup is flexible enough. Batting wise, it’s a lot closer to where we want to be. Consistency is what we’re looking for. If we can continue restricting teams to 160. Strike rotation continuously needs to improve.

Krunal Pandya (Man of the Match)

It has been good two games for us. Different experience playing in USA. I’ve been playing this role in IPL as well, and in domestic cricket as well. When you bat at No.6-7, sometimes you click, sometimes you don’t. Today I was lucky enough to hit two good shots. But it helps when you have scored some runs.

Happy the way I bowled as well. The confidence carried over with the bat helps. It’s our second game so I knew the pace to bowl at. It was two-paced, some were sticking and some were skidding. Didn’t bowl in the arc, kept it outside off.

Virat Kohli

Good finish from Jadeja and Krunal to get us past 160. The way we were going, could have got to 180, but pitch slowed down considerably in the latter half. Winning is always going to be priority. But sealing the series gives the chance to bring few guys in. Idea is always going to be to win first. But winning the first two games gives the cushion.

Starting with the new ball, the way Sundar has bowled against guys who come hard at the ball, he’s done a tremendous job. The composure he’s shown has been outstanding. He’s become fitter, leaner and is very handy with the bat as well. He is definitely going to be a factor for us.

T20 is always going to be an exciting game for people to watch. Haven’t played in Guyana before, great opportunity to experience how it’s going to be like.