2nd ODI: All-round India beat West Indies by 48 runs to level series 1-1 After an embarrassing defeat in Kochi, India were once again on the verge of losing when the bowlers came to rescue and India registered an impressive 48-run win over West Indies at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in Delhi on Saturday. West Indies were once cruising at 170/3 in 35.4 overs thanks to Dwayne Smiths 97 runs off 97 balls with 11 fours and a six. But then they lost the plot as Indian bowlers kept taking wickets at regular intervals and the Caribbeans were all out for 215 in 46.3 overs. Mohammed Shami picked up four wickets while Ravindra Jadeja and Amit Mishra took three and two wickets respectively as India level the five-match series 1-1. Chasing a modest total, openers gave Windies a strong start and they were 45/0 after 10 overs. India picked up the first wicket in the 14th over when Mohammed Shami clean bowled Darren Bravo for 26 to break the opening stand. Kieron Pollard (40) was sent in to bat up the order by captain Dwayne Bravo and he proved his decision right as he had a 72-run partnership for the second wicket with Dwayne Smith to put West Indies in a commanding position. He was dismissed by Amit Mishra in the 29th over when he was trying to slog sweep and the ball took an inside edge of the bat before hitting the stumps. After getting the wicket of Pollard, Amit Mishra gained his confidence back and bowled two back-to-back maidens to keep India alive in the match. West Indies failed to score runs at quick pace after the fall of Pollards wicket and Samuels in particular struggled against the spinners as the required run-rate kept creeping up. West Indies took the batting power-play in the 36th over when 102 runs were required to win in 89 balls. Mohammed Shami was hit by Smith straight down the ground for a massive six but on the very next delivery he was bowled when the ball brushed his pads and crashed onto the off-stump. Marlon Samuels was dismissed by Umesh Yadav in the 40th over when he was caught by Kohli at cover-point trying to hit it over him. Samuels 38-ball 16 hurt West Indies badly. Dwayne Bravo came in to bat after his dismissal with the required run-rate going over 7.5 runs. Amit Mishra picked up his second wicket when Dinesh Ramdin was caught by Suresh Raina at the slip in the 41st over. Ravindra Jadeja dismissed Darren Sammy and Andre Russel in the 43rd over put India on top and then Shami got his third wicket picking up Dwayne Bravo (10) in the 44th over kill West Indies hope of winning the match. Earlier, Suresh Raina hit an impressive 62 while Virat Kohli returned to form with his first half-century in eight months as India posted a competitive total against the West Indies. Raina carried his splendid T20 form into the match and Kohli regained his lost touch at his home ground as the two players added 105 runs for the fourth wicket after a sedate start by India. Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni also contributed in Indias total with his unbeaten 51 off 40 balls. In his trademark style, Dhoni hit a six and a four off paceman Jerome Taylor to complete his 56th half-century in the last over of the innings. Ravindra Jadeja (6) failed but Bhuvneshwar Kumar (18) added some quick runs. Raina batted like as if an artist was on work and struck the ball elegantly, effortlessly. His drives, late cuts and one inside-out six off paceman Ravi Rampaul were a treat to watch after India elected to bat. Rainas assuring presence at one end not only pulled India out of the slump but it also gave Kohli a chance to arrest his slide as the Delhi lad could play freely without having to worry about run-rate. Kohli struggled in the entire England tour, where he could score only one fifty and that too at the tour-ending T20 match. While Raina scored at a good pace, Kohli was patient in his approach, going for singles and hitting the odd boundary in between. The stand was broken when Raina miscued a shot off Jerome Taylor and the edge flew to Kieron Pollard at mid-off. Rainas 62 came off 60 balls with five fours and two sixes. Kohlis 62-run knock was his first ODI fifty since scoring a century against Bangladesh in February this year. His knock came off 78 balls with five shots to the fence. Before the two joined hands, India were struggling at 74 for three inside 20 overs as the visitors strangled the Indian batting with some courageous effort, especially their pace duo of Rampaul and Taylor. Taylor was the pick of the bowlers for the visitors as he took three wickets for 54 runs.
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 23:22:06 +0000
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