Match report: India v WI - 2nd ODI
First Published : 02 Dec 2011, 05:33
Last Modified : 03 Dec 2011, 00:03
Visakhapatnam, Dec 2: India cantered to yet another easy victory against the West Indies which earning a 2-0 lead in the five-match ODI series being played between the two sides. Virat Kohli, with a blazing knock of 117, was one of the architects of the Indian win which saw the hosts chase down a score of 270 in 48.1 overs.
After a drizzle delayed the start by 30 minutes, West Indies found themselves in all kinds of trouble to begin with. Umesh Yadav (3/38) and R Vinay Kumar (2/43) ripped through the visitors’ top order to reduce them to 63 for five in 16.1 overs. Kieron Pollard then struck a 30-ball 35 (3x4, 2x6) in a 56-run stand with opener Lendl Simmons to stage a brief recovery for the visitors. However, R Ashwin put an end to Pollard’s innings with a delivery that lobbed up off the all-rounder’s pads on to his glove and into the hands of wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel.
Ravindra Jadeja then trapped Darren Sammy (2) lbw and bowled Andre Russell (11) to leave the West Indies at 149 for eight in 30.5 overs. Simmons, meanwhile, had been the only saving grace in the visitors’ disappointing batting performance this far; the opener’s innings of 78 had taken the West Indies past the 150-run mark.
However, when Simmons was run out off the last ball of the 36th over and the score reading 170 for nine, the end of the West Indies innings seemed imminent. Instead, Ravi Rampaul, batting at No. 10, hit an unbeaten 86* to propel the visitors to a score of 269 for nine in 50 overs. Rampaul’s innings, the highest ever by a No. 10 in ODIs, saw some crisp hits to the boundary line and included a partnership of 99 in 14 overs with last man Kemar Roach (24*), the third-highest partnership ever for the final wicket.
India floundered early in their run chase with the loss of openers Parthiv Patel (2) and Gautam Gambhir (12). Virender Sehwag (26 off 35) fell to Marlon Samuels shortly after rain had prevented play for 45 minutes in the Indian innings.
But with the hosts’ score reading 84 for three in 16.3 overs, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma took charge of the chase and put the game firmly in India’s reach. The pair added 163 for the fourth wicket which saw Virat bring up his eighth ODI century.
India suffered a minor hiccup as they lost both Kohli (117) and Suresh Raina (0) within a space of four deliveries, but with Rohit Sharma (90*) continuing his good form from the previous game, India cruised to victory with five wickets and 11 deliveries to spare.
Brief scores: India 270/5 in 48.1 overs (Virat Kohli 117, Rohit Sharma 90*, Kemar Roach 2/40) beat West Indies 269/9 in 50.0 overs (Ravi Rampaul 86*, Lendl Simmons 78, Umesh Yadav 3/38) by 5 wickets
Man-of-the-match: Virat Kohli for his blustery knock of 117 (off 123 balls, 14x4)
