West Indies skipper Shai Hope admitted that they didn’t bat well in the first ODI against India at Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados after their five-wicket loss on Thursday. The home team was bundled out for a paltry score of 114 runs after Rohit Sharma won the toss and decided to bowl first.
The hosts collapsed like a house of cards as their batters could not get going. Barring captain Shai Hope, who scored 43 runs, none of the West Indies batters could show any resistance.
In fact, six of their batters could not even reach the double-digit mark as they failed to find any kind of impetus. The home team kept losing wickets at regular intervals and could not show any stomach for a fight.
Ravindra Jadeja returned with figures of 3-37 whereas Kuldeep Yadav breathed down the neck of the West Indies’ lower middle order, picking 4-6 in the three overs he bowled.
Furthermore, Hardik Pandya, Shardul Thakur, and debutant Mukesh Kumar took one wicket apiece. It was a difficult pitch to bat on but the Windies batters could not come up with the answers.
Shai Hope said in the post-match presentation, “Not too many words come to mind. We didn’t play the way we needed to, we need to find ways to score on difficult pitches like this. I’m not making excuses but anyone watching cricket can see what is happening here.”
Hope also showered praise on Jayden Seales, who returned with figures of 1-21, “He is a quality player, somebody we can invest in and I hope he grows from strength to strength. The Indian bowlers did well on this surface, but we didn’t bat well.”
On the other hand, Kuldeep Yadav was awarded Player of the Match for his brilliant bowling show. Yadav was able to make the most of the slow conditions and bowled in the right areas to reap his rewards.
Yadav said after the game, “Perfect, the fast bowlers bowled really well with Mukesh, Shardul and Hardik. Me and Jaddu were brilliant, we hit the right lengths which is what was necessary on this wicket. I’m just focusing on my rhythm, hitting the right lengths and it has been very nice. I thought it will be a seaming paradise, we are happy we got 7 wickets from our side.”
The second ODI between India and West Indies will be played at the same venue of Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados on Saturday.
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