Former Indian all-rounder Reetinder Singh Sodhi believes India’s bowling attack won’t let West Indies’ power-hitter fire. The visitors had come up with a fantastic bowling performance in the first T20I against the Windies as they had won by a gargantuan margin of 68 runs.
India restricted West Indies to a paltry score of 122-8 in the first match, which was played at the Brian Lara Stadium, Trinidad. The tourists had posted a par score of 190-6 after Rohit Sharma and Dinesh Karthik had played brilliant knocks of 64 and 41 respectively.
Meanwhile, the Indian bowlers were right on the money as they didn’t let the opposition batters build any impetus. Arshdeep Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravi Bishnoi scalped two wickets each as they bowled at the top of their game. The pitch had assistance for the spinners and the Indian bowlers were able to make the most of the conditions.
The trio of Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi and Ravindra Jadeja conceded only 74 runs in the 12 overs they bowled collectively and took a total of five wickets.
Moreover, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh were right on the money in their respective spells.
Reetinder Singh Sodhi said while talking to India News Sports, “A lot of people talked about the fact that West Indies are a force to reckon with in T20 cricket as they have power hitters in their side. However, India’s bowling attack won’t let these power hitters fire. The same thing happened in this game as well.”
On the other hand, former Punjab all-rounder heaped praise on Rohit Sharma and Dinesh Karthik for their fine knocks in the first T20I. Karthik once again added the finishing touches as he smashed 19-ball 41 and Singh reckons the veteran batter provided the momentum to Indian innings.
“It was an exceptional performance from Team India. They completely outclassed West Indies. Rohit Sharma was a key contributor, and the way Dinesh Karthik took the bowlers to the cleaners towards the end, gave the team an important impetus as we registered a big total. The bowlers did their job well in the second half to take the side to victory.”
The second T20I between India and West Indies will be played on Monday.
