India vs West Indies 2nd T20 preview: India eye same script in Lucknow

The five-wicket win in Kolkata might have looked a bit laboured for the hosts but the absence of batting talisman Virat Kohli cannot be discounted

SPORTS | The misery has seemed never-ending for the West Indies and India would look to ensure that the script doesn’t change when the two sides clash in the second Twenty20 International here on Tuesday.

India’s four-match T20 losing streak against the West Indies ended on Sunday in Kolkata. And in the penultimate game of what has been a disastrous tour for the visitors, India would be favourites to lock the series in their favour.

India’s last win against the West Indies before Sunday came way back on March 23, 2014 in the World T20 in Bangladesh.|India vs West Indies 2nd T20 | India Vs West Indies 

With the win at the Eden Gardens, India managed to better their head-to-head record against the reigning world T20 champions to 5-3 now from nine exchanges between 2009 and 2017. The five-wicket win in Kolkata might have looked a bit laboured for the hosts but the absence of batting talisman Virat Kohli cannot be discounted.

It was also the first T20 International for which India dropped Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the colossus whose batting form has been on the wane but the cricketing brain and reflexes behind the stumps remain assets for the team.

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India vs West Indies 2nd ODI LIVE: Ind vs WI last ball thriller ends in tie

India scored 321/6 in their 50 overs and in its reply, West Indies too scored 321 runs

SPORTS | Virat Kohli’s 157 runs, Ambati Rayudu’s 73 runs for India, Shai Hope’s 123 runs and Hetmyer’s 94 runs for West Indies — all fell short to get their respetive teams a victory in the second ODI match between the two teams.

India scored 321/6 in their 50 overs and in its reply, West Indies too scored 321 runs, losing seven wickets. It was a last ball thriller as West Indies needed 5 runs in just one ball, Umesh Yadav bowled the ball and Hope smashed it for a boundary, with that, it was all over, it all ended in a tie.

Virat Kohli’s day, filled with milestones was marred by West Indies’ resilient performance today, especially with the bat as the latter managed to tie the match with India in a last-ball nail-biter, India Vs West Indies | 

After today’s tie, India still lead the 5 match series 1-0. It looked just another India vs West Indies match during the first innings and even during the initial overs of the West Indies batting but Shai Hope and Hetmyer’s combined efforts denied India another victory.

It was a double delight for India captain Virat Kohli who completed 10000 runs in ODI format taking just 205 innings to do so and then hitting his 37th ODI century. Kohli was also adjudged man of the match for his prolific performance with the bat, scoring 157 runs including 13 fours and 3 sixes.

Virat Kohli also became the fastest player to score 10,000 runs in ODIs, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar’s record. However, Windies marred Kohli’s milestone day as Shae Hope scored 123 runs not out and nearly took the match away from India but the last over confusions proved costly to the team.

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India Vs West Indies 1st ODI Highlights: Kohli, Rohit help India crush WI

Kohli scored his 36th ODI century while Rohit Sharma smashed his 20th ODI century.

They came, They saw, they scored centuries. If today’s match description was to be squeezed into a small pararaph, this is how it would look.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma left no area on the field whre they did not score runs. It was raining runs and West Indies bowlers unfortunately had no cover. The just saw the ball clear the fence, race past them for boundaries and all they could do was witness the spectacle that both the batsmen put..(SPORTS) Kohli scored his 36th ODI century while Rohit Sharma smashed his 20th ODI century. India crushed West Indies by 8 wickets, chasing a huge target of 323 runs with 47 balls to spare. With this, India lead 1-0 in the 5-match ODI series.

India cptain Virat Kohli was adjudged man of the match for his prolific 140 runs in 107 balls including 21 fours and 2 sixes. Kohli also completed his 2000 plus runs in third successive year and is 81 runs away from his 10,000 runs. Rohit Sharma scored 152 off 117 balls including 15 fours and 8 sixes, but his innings was mostly eclipsed by Virat Kohli’s rampage, who showed no mercy right from the start and punished West Indies bowlers left, right adnd centre.

|India Vs West Indies | 

Earlier, West Indies did not have a good start with three of their batsmen back into the pavilion without contributing much including seniormost player in the side Marlon Samuels who was out for a duck. But their innings caught momentum after being catalysed by Keiron Powell who scored half century and then it all revolved around Hetmyer who went on to score his 9th ODI century.

Others who came to bat did cameos but West Indies put up a 300-plus total largely because of Hetmyer’s brilliant knock and a much needed one on the day. For India, Umesh Yadav and Khaleel Ahmed picked 3 wickets each, conceding 64 runs each in their 10 overs and Mohammed Shami had a tough day as he splurged 81 runs in his 10 overs picking 2 wickets.

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Dhoni’s cover, Virat Kohli’s workload key issues for ODI squad selection

It is still not clear whether the squad will be announced for the first three games or the entire series, which comprises five ODIs and three T20 Internationals and starts on October 21

Sports | Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s poor batting form might force selectors to include the flamboyant Rishabh Pant when they pick the ODI squad for the limited-overs leg of the ongoing home series against the West Indies, here Thursday.

It is still not clear whether the squad will be announced for the first three games or the entire series, which comprises five ODIs and three T20 Internationals and starts on October 21.Skipper Virat Kohli’s presence may be another key issue even though it’s unlikely that he will be inclined to rest for the entire series.

|India vs West Indies 2018|

However, the primary bone of contention will be whether the selectors and the team management will at least agree on having a cover batsman for Dhoni, whose wicketkeeping remains sharp but batting form has been on the slide.

“We all know that Dhoni will play till the World Cup but there is no harm in grooming Pant, who could be a terrific No.6 or 7 batsman, who has the ability to finish games,” a senior BCCI official privy to selection matters (BS) told PTI today. Since his debut Test hundred at the Oval followed by a stroke-filled 92 in Rajkot, calls for the 20-year-old’s inclusion have only grown louder.

While Dinesh Karthik is already there, his consistency and inability to finish matches at crucial junctures will keep the team management worried. There are a few other permutations that the selectors might consider. Kedar Jadhav’s dodgy hamstring will rule him out of the limited-overs leg which opens up one potential middle-order batting slot.

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