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New Delhi: India’s T20 International (T20I) series with the West Indies did not go quite as expected by the fans, or even the team. The West Indies, down and out after not being able to qualify for the 50-over World Cup, were expected to be pushovers, is all formats. But as it turned out, they were in the game, even in the One-Day Internationals and their T20I series win against a side that rarely loses any such series was something that they will cherish. Equally, this is something that will not sit well with the Indian fans, irrespective of whatever ‘experiments’ were being done with the team. The West Indies were a side even the B team was expected to beat, and the supporters are not amused.
What was beginning to look like a rout after losing the first two T20Is did become a contest post India’s recovery, but the end was poor, in all aspects.
For one, was there any attention paid to the rain that was a constant almost through 75 per cent of the match? One gets a distinct feeling that the prospect of rain was restricted to the Caribbean shores, in terms of India’s planning. Surely, they did not think that the rain in Florida, as tropical a place as they come, would be just a passing event?
So, India batted first and the first throw of the dice by West Indies skipper Rovman Powell had immediate effect. Using left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein was a masterstroke and once Hosein dismissed Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, who had run an absolute rampage in the 4th T20I, the Indian batting struggled for most of the time.
Suryakumar Yadav once more proved he is a way more clued-in batter when it comes to 20-over format and his effort was crucial in keeping India alive, while Tilak Varma did his escalating credentials no harm at all.
But that said, India’s inability to score way past the 165 runs they eventually got was worrisome. This was a glass-top pitch, with a sheen that promised hardness and lost of runs and as Brandon King, Nicholas Pooran and Shai Hope showed later in the day, should have been a run-fest.
The West Indies batters need to be appreciated for their focus. Time and again, they had to walk off the field, because of the constant drizzle and because of threats of lightning. But they did not let their focus waver.
As for the Indian bowlers, they struggled with the wet cricket ball and conditions, which again raises the question as to why were they bowling second anyway.
The spinners were not in the game, unlike previous times and King and Pooran played them astutely, ensuring that the left-arm wrist spin of Kuldeep Yadav was negotiated skilfully. Yuzvendra Chahal was carted around and for some reason, Axar Patel got only one over, as did Mukesh Kumar, who is in the side as a specialist bowler.
Pandya opted to bowl more than Mukesh and even Varma got a bowl ahead of Patel. One assumes the former was an experiment, while the latter was surrender.
Pandya said post-match that there was nothing wrong with losing an odd series. Agreed, so long as the big picture is not lost.
India still do not know their squad for the ICC World Cup, just around the corner, and while a loss in a T20 series is not the end of the world, many of these players will be seen in the 50-over world tournament. Many of them look unconvincing, while the seniors like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were left out of both the ODIs and the T20Is, while they will surely play the World Cup.
Some experiments were good. Kuldeep Yadav and Tilak Varma showed their mettle, while Jaiswal is a breath of fresh air. Bu many of the rest are worrying. One wonders if this series was reflection of another elusive effort at an ICC trophy.
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