New Delhi: Excellent bowling performance by West Indies in defending 145. After WI’s innings, captain Rovman Powell was quite confident that his team could defend the total if their pacemen could convert the momentum well. And that is exactly what they did against the number one T20I side.

West Indies beat India by 4 runs

Akeal Hosein made an early breakthrough when he removed Gill with a beauty. Ishan Kishan, who scored four consecutive fifties on that tour, fell to McCoy. SKY and Tilak Varma steadied the ship somewhat, as the latter looked terrible. The hosts fought back. They interrupted cooperation with Hetmyer. He takes a great catch to bowl SKY and the debutant perished to a quick short ball from Romario Shepherd.

Shepherd bowled yorker on the last delivery of the match, Mukesh Kumar goes for 1 run. The batsman jamed it down to long-on for just a single. West Indies win by 4 runs.

Holder to Hardik Pandya, gone Bowled. Holder came up with off-cutter, Hardik Pandya walked forward and across to work it into the leg-side. Got beaten on the inside edge and the ball hit his pad before clattering onto the sticks.

Hardik Pandya b Holder 19(19) [4s-3]

Shepherd removes Varma

Tilak Varma’s got tricked by Shepherd, caught by Hetmyer. Shephred bowled 113 mph, short and slow delivery, Tilak Varma formed to play a pivot move and noticed the man below when his timing went off the rails. Hetmyer moved from his low-waisted square leg to the right and swallowed it.

Tilak Varma c Hetmyer b Shephred 39(22) [4s-2 6s-3].

Obed McCoy to Ishan Kishan, four, 80 miles per hour, off-speed long ball pops off left handed, Ishan Kishan tried to swing over the middle of the wicket, a thicked outside edge slips into the sky flew over the Crash into the third man fence on the rebound.

Gill depart early

Akeal Hosein to Shubman Gill, stumped and out. Great bowling from Akeal Hossein! Slowly blast through the air at 86 km/h, then turn and fly over the outer edge. Gill came down the truck, moved sideways a little, and walked upside down on the ceiling. Shubman Gill st Pooran b Akeal Hosein 3(9)

India come to chase down

Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill will open the innings for India. Ishan Kishan is on strike. Akeal Hosein will open the attack

Mukesh Kumar really hit the Yorkers in the final two overs. India will be happy with their performance. It took a long time (12 minutes in less than two hours) to bowl 20 overs, but settled for 149.

The West Indies got off to a good start with King’s innings, but the introduction of a spin sent off both openers on three balls. Pooran came out and threw the first ball to the quartet. After a power play Pooran calmed down and showed great respect for Kuldeep Yadav, but after kicking him out he caught one in the wind and was caught deep in the middle of the wicket. That was a big turning point.

West Indies captain Rovman Powell took the lead and hammard a couple of six-on after dropped by Chahal, but India bounced back spectacularly in the final three overs, finishing just 21 of their good runs. Wind is a big factor here and it will be interesting to see how India approaches the pursuit.

Arshdeep bag two wicket in same over

Arshdeep Singh to Powell, caught by Suryakumar Yadav and Powell gone. . On a length with a slow off ball, Powell misjudged the pace and straight to SKY on a long off. It was Arshdeep Singh’s knuckle ball. End of a good innings. Powell c Suryakumar Yadav b Arshdeep Singh 48(32) [4s-3 6s-3]

Arshdeep Singh to Hetmyer was caught outside by Axar!! Good catch by Axar Patel on the left defending himself from the sweeper. A late offside ball was hit hard and flew into the air, and Axar flew to the left and caught it.

Hetmyer c Axar b Arshdeep Singh 10(12) [4s]

Hardik removes Pooran

Hardik Pandya to Pooran, out, caught by Tilak Varma. Disappointed Pooran smashed the pad with bat. He made a deep hole in the middle of the ticket gate. Seaming up with a back of length delivery from the outside, he caught the wind and easily caught Tilak heading straight for him. Pooran c Tilak Varma b Hardik Pandya 41(34) [4s-2 6s-2]

Pandya: Nicky 😛

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.#INDvWIAdFreeonFanCode #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/voBvRALdc4

— FanCode (@FanCode) August 3, 2023

Kuldeep Yadav picks Charles

Kuldeep Yadav goes for Charles but Tilak Varma catches him outside!! A great running catch by Tilak from mid-wicket. It was thrown into the stumps and so was googly, with Charles missing a slog sweep and staying in the air for a long time, and Tilak running 10-15 meters to the left before diving in and gaining the hold. Great judgment and Kuldeep Yadav hit in one over. Charles c Tilak Verma b Kuldeep Yadav 3(6).

"𝗛𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗴𝗲.”@TilakV9

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.#INDvWIAdFreeonFanCode #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/1O9KQsBOOx

— FanCode (@FanCode) August 3, 2023

Chahal gives India first breakthrough

Chahal to Brandon King LBW! Brandon King just wasted review. If the attempted fracture had been flat trajectory, straight pitching or sliding, King played from the wrong line and missed forward defense, an easy decision for chair umpire Gregory Brathwaite. Three reds, as shown by HawkEye. Chahal turned the game around with a 3 ball. Brandon King lbw b Chahal 28(19) [4s-4 6s-1]

Chahal to Mayers, gone Lbw!! Chahal bowls the first ball. Too full of stumps, pushed through the forehand, Mayers misses the swing and has to bat in front of the stumps. Did it cross and miss the stump? Looking forward to HawkEye. Mayers chatted with King and left. HawkEye is on – Hit by the ump call and misses the off stump. Mayers missed. Mayers lbw b Chahal 1 (7)

West Indies skipper Rovman Powell won the toss and decided to bat first against the Hardik Pandya-led team India at the Brain Lara Stadium in Trinidad on Thursday.

In a 50-over World Cup year, playing a five-match T20I series wouldn’t normally serve much purpose, but for both India and West Indies, it provides an early opportunity to adapt to the conditions and get the ball rolling. Preparation for next year’s T20 World Cup to be held in the Caribbean and the United States.

Playing XI

Hardik Pandya to lead team India

India won the Test and One Day International (ODI), now the attention is diverted to T20 format. Men in Blue are scheduled to play 5 matches T20 series. All-rounder Hardik Pandya will be leading the young Indian squad.

On the other hand, Rovman Powell will serve as the captain of the West Indies side. After loosing both the series from the hands of visiting team, the host will looking to bounce back in shortest format of the game.

Suryakumar Yadav is a key member of the T20I team and after an average performance in the ODI series hopes to start with a format that works for him. Umran Malik has not been at his best in a 50-over game and will be interested in finding his rhythm and getting the West Indian hitter at his best.

Mukesh Kumar to makes debut for India?

Meanwhile, Mukesh Kumar, who has shown his skills in Test and ODI formats in the first series in India, will look to impress in the T20I format given his debut. There are plenty of spin options in India, and it remains to be seen which one will win.

West Indies side report

The West Indies side has a lot of quality players in their squad, but after a slump at last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia, this is another fresh start. They beat South Africa 2-1 at the beginning of the year, and their performance will stand out as they challenge India, which is embarking on a new journey of its own, with old defenses replaced by new ones if recent selection results are good.