"We came to know why the West Indies did not qualify for the World Cup" - Aakash Chopra on hosts' 'ordinary' performance in 1st ODI vs India
Aakash Chopra has highlighted that the West Indies' 'extremely ordinary' batting performance in the first ODI against India on Thursday (July 27) showed why they failed to qualify for the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Shai Hope and Co. were bowled out for a paltry 114 after being asked to bat first in Bridgetown, Barbados. The Men in Blue chased down the target with five wickets and more than 27 overs to spare to take the lead in the three-match series.
While reviewing the game in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra lambasted the West Indies' performance:
"We were trying to figure out who will play for India at No. 4, who will be our fast bowler, will we have a left-right combination, and whether Sanju Samson will play, but we came to know why the West Indies did not qualify for the World Cup."
The former Indian opener pointed out that the pitch was not as bowler-friendly as the West Indies batting made it look:
"They gave an extremely ordinary performance. It's not that the ball was spinning a lot. Ravindra Jadeja bowled extremely well and pitched the ball at the right spot, but for wickets to fall one after the other and to play full balls on the back foot, although Kohli's catch was actually outstanding."
Ravindra Jadeja picked up three wickets, including Romario Shepherd, who was brilliantly caught by Virat Kohli at second slip. Kuldeep Yadav ran through the Windies' lower order to finish with extraordinary figures of 4-6 in three overs.
"The shot Shimron Hetmyer played - why?" - Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra lambasted some of the West Indies batters for throwing away their wickets:
"The shot Shimron Hetmyer played - why? Brandon King was still okay. He got out to an incoming delivery, but Kyle Mayers -he was trying to hit a six by jumping down the track against Hardik Pandya. Mukesh Kumar got Alick Athanaze out. So, overall, the story was not very good."
While acknowledging that the West Indies spinners looked decent because of the helpful surface, Chopra concluded by saying that Rohit Sharma and Co. will have to figure out ways to challenge themselves in the remaining two games:
"They are batting extremely ordinarily. In bowling, because there was something on this pitch, (Gudakesh) Motie and Yannic Cariah were getting the ball to spin, but I saw the team as very weak. So India will have to challenge themselves, as the opposition team is not ready to give a challenge."
Gudakesh Motie (2-26) and Yannic Cariah (1-35) troubled the Indian batters during the run chase. However, the 115-run target wasn't challenging enough, and Ishan Kishan's half-century ensured that the visitors got across the line despite a few hiccups.