The rain came pouring down at the midway stage of India’s innings after the visitors were off to a good start thanks to opener Ishan Kishan, who struck a half-century.
But disaster struck India just before the rain interruption when the visitors lost two wickets off successive deliveries, slumping to 113/5 in the 25th over.
Stand-in skipper Hardik Pandya (7), leading the side as Rohit Sharma and senior batter Virat Kohli have been rested, tried to pull a bouncer around shoulder height from Jayden Seales but got it straight to Brandon King at midwicket. Pandya was the fourth batter to get out in the last ball of the 24th over.
Sanju Samson (9) got out off the first delivery of the 25th over as he edged legspinner Yannic Cariah to King in the slips, getting squared up as he shaped up to hit it square and the ball spun and bounced and took the edge.
India had made a good start after West Indies skipper Shai Hope elected to bowl first, as the two openers Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill (34) raised 90 runs for the first wicket. Ishan struck a run-a-ball 55, hitting six boundaries and one six. This is his second successive half-century after the 52 in the opening match of the series.
Kishan, who survived a close run-out attempt and a hit on his hand by a sharply rising delivery from Alzarri Joseph, completed his fifty off 51 balls, hitting five boundaries and one six. He hammered Joseph for boundaries off successive deliveries in the eighth over and drove Mayers gloriously past the bowler in the previous over. A ramp shot off a short wide one by Alzarri Joseph got him another four before hammered Motie for a six over long-on in the 15th over.
But he got out just when India were looking up to him to get a big one considering the ease with which he was batting.
Gill was the first to go while trying to open up after a sedate start as he tried to hit Gudakesh Motie out of the ground but was caught by Alzarri Joseph a couple of steps inside the rope.
–Ajit Weekly News
bsk
News Credits – I A N S
