3 positives for India from the 1st T20I vs West Indies
Prior to the first T20I against West Indies at Eden Gardens on February 16, India captain Rohit Sharma claimed that experimentation is overrated. The Men in Blue stuck to their skipper's words as they executed their standard plans to perfection and cruised to a six-wicket win with seven balls to spare.
After being inserted into bat, the visitors could never really get going despite Nicholas Pooran's attacking fifty. India were tasked with chasing 157, and although Roston Chase bowled an inspired spell, they got over the line fairly comfortably to take the early lead in the series.
Here are three positives for India from their win in the first T20I against West Indies.
#3 Ravi Bishnoi makes a stellar debut for India
Ravi Bishnoi's dream come true moment 👏👏
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Injuries to Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Axar Patel gave Ravi Bishnoi the chance to make his India debut in the first T20I. Playing alongside Yuzvendra Chahal, the young leg-spinner outshone his senior partner to finish with figures of 2/17 in his four overs.
Bishnoi had a few nervy moments on debut. He first handed Pooran a reprieve by stepping on the boundary cushion after claiming a catch, and then sent down four wides in his first over (six wides in total). But the 21-year-old soon found his rhythm and dismissed the Windies duo of Roston Chase and Rovman Powell in a single over to put the brakes on the visitors' innings.
Bishnoi's accuracy and potent googlies, combined with the pace at which he bowls, make him an enticing T20 weapon who can bowl at any stage of the innings for India. His promising debut will hold the team in good stead as they build towards the 2022 T20 World Cup.
#2 Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan could be a long-term opening pair
KL Rahul, who was initially named in India's squad for the West Indies T20Is, was ruled out with a hamstring issue, handing Ishan Kishan the opportunity to open the innings alongside Rohit Sharma. The duo put on an impressive opening partnership of 64, with the powerplay yielding as many as 58 runs.
Although Kishan struggled for fluency during his innings and labored to 35 off 42 balls, he could be Rohit's long-term opening partner in T20Is. As Rohit went after the Windies bowling in the powerplay, the left-hander was content to knock the ball around the play second fiddle. And while he couldn't accelerate after his skipper's dismissal, his knock was crucial in the Men in Blue having a platform set for the chase.
When Rahul returns, he might slot into the middle order as he does in ODIs. Rohit and Kishan, who are likely to open for the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League, might be the national team's first-choice pairing too.
#1 India's middle-order batters polish off the chase without any fuss
After a decent start to their chase, Ishan Kishan, Rishabh Pant and Virat Kohli were dismissed in the space of three overs to raise some concerns over the ease with which India were to chase the West Indian total. But coming together in the 15h over, Suryakumar Yadav and Venkatesh Iyer put on a 48-run partnership to take the side over the line in the penultimate over with decent ease.
Suryakumar was the aggressor in the partnership. He put away the first two balls he faced for fours, striking a total of five fours and one six in his 18-ball 34. Venkatesh didn't find his timing at the start of his innings but stayed proactive and rotated strike before hitting the winning blow.
It was a crucial partnership for India, who've been trying to find some reliable finishers in the absence of Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja. Suryakumar and Venkatesh's success at Nos. 5 and 6 will have greatly boosted the morale of the team, and they will look to go from strength to strength over the next two games.