India clip Windies in ODI thriller

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC):

West Indies turned the page on a string of ordinary performances by producing a mouth-watering run chase, only to fall agonisingly short in the opening One-Day International (ODI) against India here yesterday.

Unable to crack 200 in the series against Bangladesh which ended last week, the Caribbean side gallantly went in pursuit of 309 on a quality batting track at Queen’s Park Oval, losing by three runs in the end to fall behind in the three-match series.

There was no shame, however, left-hander Kyle Mayers smashing 75 from 68 balls at the top of the order and Brandon King hitting a measured 54 from 66 deliveries in the middle.

Shamark Brooks stroked 46 from 61 balls before Romario Shepherd (39 not out) and Akeal Hosein (33 not out) nearly won it late on in an unbroken 53-run seventh-wicket partnership.

The pair needed 15 from the last over and came within one blow of overhauling their target, but the six runs required off the last ball proved out of their reach.

Sent in earlier, India got a Man-of-the-Match 97 from their captain Shikhar Dhawan, the 36-year-old left-hander falling just short of his 18th ODI hundred as the innings ended on 309 for seven off their 50 overs.

His opening partner Shubman Gill, 14 years his junior, lashed 64 from 53 deliveries while Shreyas Iyer chipped in with 54 from 57 balls, to put India on course for a total in excess of 350, especially at 205 for one at the end of the 33rd over.

West Indies pulled the scoring back in the latter half of the innings, however, left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie (2-54) and fast bowler Alzarri Joseph (2-61) making key strikes to disrupt the visitors’ momentum.

“It definitely feels like a win for us but it’s bittersweet,” said captain Nicholas Pooran.

“We keep speaking about batting 50 overs and today we batted 50 overs and we made 300-plus.

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“As a group, we’re rebuilding and we’re trying to figure it out in ODI cricket and coming up against one of the top teams in the world, today we did justice to our talent and everyone saw it today.”

Dhawan gave India the ideal start, lashing 10 fours and three sixes as he put on a rollicking 119 for the first wicket with Gill who punched half-dozen fours and two sixes.

The stand was appearing impregnable when Pooran’s direct hit found Gill short at the non-striker’s end in the 18th over but even then, Iyer arrived to punch five fours and two sixes to keep the innings going in a 94-run stand with Dhawan.

Dhawan’s demise in the 34th over, taken at point by Brooks off Motie, led to a slide where four wickets tumbled for 39 runs before Deepak Hooda (27) and Axar Patel (21) put on 42 for the sixth wicket to salvage the innings.

In reply, West Indies lost Shai Hope cheaply for seven in the fifth over with the score on 16, top-edging a short delivery from pacer Mohammed Siraj (2-57) to third man.

However, Mayers took command of the innings in a 117-run second-wicket stand with Brooks belting 10 fours and two sixes and keeping West Indies on par with the required run rate.

He raced to his 50 off 42 balls at the end of the 16th over but was one of two wickets in successive overs for seamer Shardul Thakur (2-54), Brooks also perishing after striking four fours and a six before being caught at deep midwicket.

At 138 for three in the 26th over, West Indies were revived by King who put on 51 for the fourth wicket with Pooran (25) and a further 56 for the sixth wicket with Hosein, after another two wickets fell for seven runs in the space of 11 balls.

King hit two fours and two sixes and by the time he departed in the 45th over, West Indies were scenting victory but just failed to get over the line.