India beat West Indies in the series opening first T20I match at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, Trinidad by a margin of 68 runs. After a fifty from Rohit Sharma, Dinesh Karthik’s cameo made sure that India reach 190/6 on a wicket which slowed down as the innings progressed.
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And the Indian spinners ruled the roost when the hosts came out to bat on the same pitch, chasing 191 which would have looked big right from the get go.
And that’s why West Indies openers Kyle Mayers went after youngster Arshdeep Singh, slamming the pacer for a six and four in his very first over before he was taken aback by a fast bouncer. Later, Windies kept on losing wickets as the pitch slowed down and spinners were the biggest beneficiary.
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First Ravindra Jadeja removed Jason Holder, who got a promotion at three and then wickets fell in a heap. 27/2 became 82/5 with Ravi Bishnoi and Ravichandran Ashwin both grabbing two wickets each. Shamarh Brooks remained the top scorer with 20 runs as Windies collapsed to a huge loss in the opening match. Meanwhile Arshdeep Singh also chipped in with figures of 2 for 24.
Earlier skipper Rohit Sharma was in his element while Dinesh Karthik provided the final flourish as India scored a competitive 190 for six against the West Indies in the first T20 International here on Friday. The Indian captain who endured a barren spell in the shortest format since the IPL, has changed his game since the England T20s, and provided glimpses of his vintage self with some breathtaking shots on way to a 64 off 44 balls.
Karthik, the team’s designated finisher, justified his billing with a blazing, unbeaten 19-ball 41 cameo, as 52 runs came off the last four overs in a seventh-wicket stand with Ravichandran Ashwin (13 not out). On a track where there was slow spongy bounce, most of the top-order batters were dismissed playing poor shots, even as the skipper carried on at the other end for his 27th half-century in this format.
In the process, he reclaimed his position as the highest run-getter (3443 runs) in T20Is from Martin Guptill (3399 runs). His innings had seven fours and two sixes — a lofted shot dancing down the track off Jason Holder and a short-arm pull off Alazarri Joseph.
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