1st ODI: Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill centuries power India to emphatic 8-wicket win over West Indies
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Virat Kohli brought up his record 55th ODI century with an emphatic six, marching past 15,000 runs in this format. India captain Shubman Gill also looked imperious, as he reached his 10th ODI hundred by unfurling his signature cuts and drives. Between them, India cantered to an 8-wicket win here at the Greenfield International Stadium in a chase that never once felt like a contest.A brilliant opening salvo from Rohit Sharma, whose 35-ball 32 laid the foundation for India’s pursuit, as the hosts eased past the 295-run target in 41.4 overs against a lacklustre West Indies bowling attack. India’s insouciance with the bat came after a clinical display from Kuldeep Yadav, his wrist-spin ripping through the West Indies middle-order with a four-wicket haul. This match was a lesson in class, distance and everything in between.Gill and Kohli put together a 151-run stand for the second wicket that had the Thiruvananthapuram crowd on its feet, and for a while it looked like the two of them would see the chase home between them. Cramps and fatigue got the better of Gill, as he eventually walked off, his 110 off 108 balls, with 13 fours and a six, a knock that had class written through it. Kohli, still chasing down whatever he considers “unfinished business” before the 2027 World Cup, was unbeaten on a scarcely believable 88-ball 139 in the end, his tenth ODI ton against the West Indies.West Indies didn’t have much to show for in the afternoon, but they did have Justin Greaves. Asked to bat first, the visitors leaned almost entirely on their opener, who cracked a maiden ODI hundred, 101 off 108 balls, to drag the visitors to 295/7. He put on 135 for the first wicket with John Campbell, who chipped in with a breezy 62 off 60, and that stand alone was worth the price of admission: West Indies’ first century opening partnership in ODIs in two years.Just when the West Indies looked like running away with the game, Kuldeep spun a web with figures of 10-1-40-4. It was a tour-de-force performance by India’s virtuoso chinaman bowler who was playing a different contest to the rest of his teammates.After a string of wide deliveries that left West Indies batter John Campbell visibly tetchy, Kuldeep dropped one full and straight at the stumps. On cue, Campbell got provoked and went for a mistimed sweep that was picked up by Prasidh Krishna at backward square-leg. Kuldeep then conned West Indies captain Shai Hope with drift, eliciting a leading edge that ballooned towards Ravindra Jadeja at cover.Kuldeep’s most telling blow was the manner in which he dismissed opener Justin Greaves, who was trapped lbw after missing a sweep against a ball on a length on leg stump. Greaves’ departure set jitters in the visitors’ dressing room, and on the next delivery, the Kanpur spinner bamboozled Jewel Andrew with a googly to prise his fourth scalp.Kuldeep’s timely blows meant the West Indies would lose their momentum in the middle overs, capping a redemption for the 31-year-old, who endured a tepid Sri Lanka Test series. Whatever Kuldeep lost in Sri Lanka, he’s found it again in Thiruvananthapuram.
