India Player ratings from 1st ODI vs West Indies as bowlers star for Rohit Sharma and Co. in unconvincing win
Team India got off to a winning start in the three-match ODI series against West Indies as they clinched the opening game by five wickets in Barbados on Thursday.
After winning the toss and electing to bowl, the Men in Blue turned in a comprehensive bowling display to skittle the home side for just 114. Although India then lost a few cheap wickets while trying out a few new strategies in the chase, they got over the line with almost 30 overs to spare.
Here are India's player ratings from the first ODI against West Indies.
IND vs WI 2023: Team India experiment in small chase after Kuldeep 4-fer
Rohit Sharma: 5/10
Rohit's decision-making at the toss and batting-order choices were rather bizarre. He came in at No. 7 to take India over the line.
Ishan Kishan: 8/10
Promoted to open the batting, Kishan was the only Indian batter to make a notable contribution. He notched up an aggressive fifty that comprised seven fours and a six.
Shubman Gill: 2/10
Gill's scratchy 16-ball effort fetched only seven runs. He nicked off in a slightly concerning fashion, given that he has been dismissed in exactly that way a few too many times lately. The youngster is bound to come good soon, though.
Virat Kohli: 7/10
Kohli plucked a stunner at second slip and didn't bat.
Suryakumar Yadav: 3/10
Suryakumar came in at No. 3 and played a couple of his trademark shots, but the maverick batter's terrible run in ODI cricket continued. He missed a sweep to be dismissed LBW while appearing to be slightly out of his depth against both pace and spin. India's sustained faith in him is becoming slightly tiresome.
Hardik Pandya: 6/10
Hardik bowled with the new ball and coaxed Kyle Mayers into attempting an ill-advised big hit. He was caught napping at the non-striker's end to be run out, although the decision was a touch-and-go one. The all-rounder was active on the field.
Ravindra Jadeja: 9/10
Jadeja started off his spell terribly, with no-balls and looseners galore. The left-arm spinner came into his own as the game wore on, though, picking up three important wickets to run through the West Indies middle order. He was assured with the bat in testing conditions to finish on an unbeaten 16 and also plucked an excellent catch at point.
Shardul Thakur: 6/10
Thakur castled Brandon King with a beauty. Promotion in the batting order didn't yield dividends as Yannic Cariah forced him into a tentative prod outside off.
Kuldeep Yadav: 10/10
Kuldeep was the pick of the Indian bowlers. The Windies batters had no answers to his bag of tricks as he scalped four wickets in just three overs, which included two maidens. The left-arm wrist-spinner has become an invaluable member of India's ODI bowling attack.
Mukesh Kumar: 6/10
Making his ODI debut, Mukesh bowled five overs on the trot in the powerplay. He prised out the dangerous Alick Athanaze to record his maiden wicket in the format while conceding 22 runs in his spell.
Umran Malik: 5/10
Umran bowled three overs that went for 17 runs. He struggled for accuracy slightly, even though there was the odd fortunate top edge.