The 3 match series amongst the two nations with the highest number of sixes in T20’s post the 2016 World Cup ended with some drama and magic. The home team thumped to a 2-1 victory, leaving the visitors with a slight smile of consolation.
India began the series as the favorites but as the series progressed West Indies proved their mettle in the shortest format. Especially when they beat the hosts in a convincing manner at Trivandrum.
This series was a delight to watch, there were catches and misses, sixes and wickets, all of it in a very short span. But here are some shortlisted points showing the main takeaways from the Paytm series (twenty20) between India and West Indies:
1) Lokesh Rahul is an absolute fit:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bqjll_8lkb-/
Rahul has mesmerized every cricket critique with his brilliant performances in the series. Not only the Karnataka batsman hit big sixes but also stayed at the crease as a responsible batsman. Rahul’s 163 runs during the three innings displayed sheer technique, creativity, and sincerity. He surely deserves more chances across all formats.
2) Virat’s form:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B579IVbgYUE/
The Indian captain usually misses the twenty over games in any bilateral series which makes him a little on the outskirts of the circuit. But Virat proved that out of circuit doesn’t mean out of form when he amassed 183 runs in the series including a 29 ball 70 run knock at a strike rate of 241.38. He was also awarded as the man of the series because of his mind-boggling batting. The Indian team will be happy to see their captain in such hot form.
3) Chahar can get you wickets:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5u6mLqgrLb/
Deepak Chahar made a huge statement by claiming important wickets early in the innings. His ability to swing the ball at a decent pace will be a threat to batsman all around. Deepak who was hit for 54 runs in the second match (Trivandrum) recollected himself and came back with excellent figures of 2/20 in the last T20 (Mumbai). Deepak can be India’s prime option for the World Cup in 2020.
4) Spin is a problem:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5u_vxkgFKf/
Out of other things that didn’t work well, something that everyone would notice is India’s spin bowling. The spinners kept conceding runs throughout the series. The four spinners used in the series claimed 8 wickets in total, but at the cost of high economy rates.
Yuzvendra Chahal (10.28), Washington Sundar (8.12), Ravindra Jadeja (8.66) and Kuldeep Yadav (11.25) struggled to choke the Windies lineup in the middle overs.
5) West Indies do have problems but Pollard shines:
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5NTfRyJWyS/
The West Indies bowlers let their side down by delivering extras at regular intervals. The bowlers (except for the Trivandrum game) were hit in all directions. However, the management will be happy to see Pollard back in good touch. He scored runs throughout the series and kept the Windies breathing
