In the West Indies tour of India, the hosts won the first ODI to gain a lead of 1-0 in the three-match ODI series. Clinical performances from the new skipper Rohit Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal and Washington Sundar helped India to beat West Indies by six wickets.
Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to field first on a remarkably slow pitch. The hosts had an upper hand in the match since the early overs as they managed to dismiss seven Windies batsmen even before the scoreboard reached the three-figure mark. The Indians restricted their opponents for a mere total of 176. Rohit walked out to bat with Ishan Kishan to chase down a humble target of below 200 on a slow wicket. The newly assigned full-time captain gave a blistering start to the Indian innings as the opener smashed the bowlers in all parts of the ground in the powerplay. The opening partnership gathered 84 with a run rate of over six. Rohit anchored the partnership while Kishan played the supporting role. Alzarri Joseph struck twice in the same over when the pacer got rid of Rohit and Virat Kohli. India lost the wickets of Kishan and Rishabh Pant in consecutive overs that hinted towards a twist in the tale. A smart partnership of 62 between Suryakumar Yadav and the debutant Deepak Hooda guided India over the finish line.
After the batting order debacle for the Windies in the first 20 overs, Jason Holder saved the team’s pride with a gritty half-century. Holder’s partnership with Fabian Allen helped the visitors to set up a respectable target of 177.
Chahal was the pick amongst the bowler as the spin wizard pocketed four wickets. Washington Sundar grabbed three wickets, Prasidh Krishna had two to his name and Mohammed Siraj had one scalp.
On the other end for the Windies, Joseph had two dismissals while Akeal Hosein had one.
Chahal was adjudged Man of the Match for his economical spell of 49 for 4.
Scorecard:
West Indies: 176/10, Overs: 43.5, Jason Holder 57, Yuzvendra Chahal 4/49
India: 178/4, Overs: 28, Rohit Sharma 60, Alzarri Joseph 2/45