Sharma and Kishan forged an opening stand of 64 runs to set the course for the chase in the first T20I against the West Indies.
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India limited-overs captain Rohit Sharma (40) and his opening partner Ishan Kishan (35) played brilliant individual knocks to help the hosts post 162/4 with seven balls to spare to clinch victory by six wickets in the first Twenty20 International (T20I) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Wednesday. India, thus, took a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series. Chasing a challenging target of 158 runs, India looked in control from the word go as the opening pair forged a partnership of 64 runs before Sharma was sent packing by veteran West Indies all-rounder Roston Chase. The Mumbai batter hit four boundaries and three sixes in his fiery knock off 19 deliveries while Kishan’s composed innings of 42 deliveries was laced with four fours.
However, the struggle for former India captain Virat Kohli continued, as he could contribute with only 17 runs from 13 deliveries. India were, in fact, in cruise control at 64/1 when Kohli stepped into bat but he failed to match his own standards through his innings. This comes after he had recorded the scores of 0, 18 and 8 in the three-match One-Day International (ODI) series against the West Indies.
Wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant (8) also failed to show spark with his hard-hitting abilities but Suryakumar Yadav (34 off 18) and all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer (24 off 13) played brilliant unbeaten cameos to help the hosts cross the line. Yadav hit five boundaries and one six in his knock while Iyer smashed two fours and one hit over the fence.
Earlier, asked to bat, the visitors lost their opener Brandon King (4) on the fifth delivery to paceman Bhuvneshwar Kumar. His opening partner Kyle Mayers (31), however, held the fort for the West Indies and was helped on by the brilliant batting display from Pooran.
Mayers’ 24-ball cameo, which included seven boundaries, was brought to an end by wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal after he was caught plumb in front of the stumps. Later, incoming batters, Roston Chase (4) and Rovaman Powell (2) failed to make much difference to the scoreboard as they were sent packing by Bishnoi in quick succession. Middle-order batter Akeal Hosein (10) too did not get going with the bat.
Pooran, however, continued on his slogfest and did not allow the Indian bowlers to settle with their dominance. He brought up his half-century in mere 38 deliveries and went on to hit four boundaries and five hits over the top in his 43-ball innings.
West Indies captain Kieron Pollard (24), then, took the innings forward with his unbeaten knock off 19 deliveries which included two boundaries and a six.
Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi who made a name for himself through his consistent performances in domestic cricket and IPL also impressed in his maiden T20I appearance for the national team. He returned the best figures for an Indian bowler in the first T20I — 2/17 — by unsettling the West Indies line-up after dismissing Chase and Powell in the same over.
India will host the West Indies for the second T20I at the same venue on Friday.
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