2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by India in the 1st T20I vs West Indies
Team India's 200th T20I match didn't go to plan as West Indies clinched a four-run victory in a thrilling contest at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad on Thursday, August 3. With the win, the home side took a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
India have generally been quite astute under Hardik Pandya, but the captain and team management need to take responsibility for some of the decisions they've been making. While some have been encouraging, such as the call to move towards a younger, more dynamic side, others have been puzzling to say the least.
With the 2024 T20 World Cup to be held in the USA and the Caribbean, the Men in Blue need to ensure that they get sufficient preparation in during this series against the Windies.
Here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by Team India in the first T20I against West Indies.
#3 Mistake - India's team selection, particularly given their batting order, was far from ideal
Ishan Kishan belted three half-centuries in the preceding ODI series, so India decided to give him a go at the top of the order in the first T20I as well. However, the young opener couldn't deliver, as has been the case so far in the format.
Kishan racked up his fifth single-digit score in his last six T20I innings, a damning indictment of how poor he has been in the powerplay. He is now without a fifty in 15 outings in the format. It is clear that India can't keep Yashasvi Jaiswal out after the terrific form he showed during the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL).
Sanju Samson, meanwhile, was deployed at No. 6, below captain Hardik. While Samson is a capable hitter, he has never been the type to finish innings off. Why he is batting below the Indian skipper is a question only the management can answer.
Samson's average entry point in T20s since 2021 is within the sixth over. In the first T20I, though, he came to the crease with exactly nine overs to spare. How will the dynamic batter be able to make an impact in that role?
It would be wiser for the Men in Blue to bring Jaiswal into the mix and deploy Samson higher in the batting order. They could further move Hardik and perhaps even Tilak Varma lower to accommodate for that change.
#2 Masterstroke - The Men in Blue executed their death-bowling plans well
After Yuzvendra Chahal dropped Rovman Powell at cover in the 15th over, the West Indies skipper responded by butchering Hardik over the midwicket boundary. With five overs to go and two explosive batters at the crease, the Windies, who were placed at 107/4, would've fancied their chances of reaching the 170-mark.
However, India kept things tight at the death. Chahal conceded only eight runs despite being hit for a six in the 16th over, and Arshdeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar took over the mantle in the final four.
Arshdeep went for 19 runs in the two overs he bowled and prised out two wickets, relying on variations in both pace and length to do the trick. Mukesh, meanwhile, picked a more straightforward route, nailing his yorkers and conceding just 15 runs in his two overs. The right-arm pacer wasn't hit for a single boundary at the death.
Despite the Windies having players like Powell, Shimron Hetmyer, Romario Shepherd and Jason Holder at the crease, they managed only 149/6 in their 20 overs.
#1 Mistake - Hardik and Co.'s collapse while chasing was shocking
![Hardik Pandya [right] got out at an inopportune time for his team](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/08/1bb3e-16910870271306-1920.jpg)
West Indies weren't the only team to drop the ball towards the end of their batting innings. India did too, and arguably in more egregious ways.
At the end of the 15th over, the Men in Blue needed only 37 runs with six wickets in hand. Hardik and Samson were set at the crease, and the Windies needed to get one over out of Romario Shepherd. By the time that over came to being, though, India had practically lost the game.
Hardik was the first to go, dismissed playing a casual cross-batted nudge off Holder. The Men in Blue didn't score any runs off that over, and to make things worse, Sanju Samson was run out while attempting to take a quick single.
Kuldeep Yadav couldn't put bat to ball despite being India's No. 8, and Axar Patel had too much on his plate. To top it all off, the team management mixed up their batting order, with Chahal first entering the ground and then leaving, only to be forced to enter it again.
It was a collapse unbecoming of a top-level team, one that will contend for the T20 World Cup at these same venues next year.