IND vs WI: There Were Nerves In The End But Didn't Expect It To Turn That Way - Shikhar Dhawan
Indian captain Shikhar Dhawan said the end overs of West Indies’ run chase in the first ODI were nervy but he was happy the bowlers kept their composure to script a 3-run win on Friday.
Dhawan (97 off 99 balls) and Shubman Gill (64 off 53 balls) piled on 119 runs for the opening wicket before Dhawan combined with Shreyas Iyer (54 off 57 balls) to stitch a 94-run partnership. Despite the excellent platform setup, India squandered away the advantage and had to settle with 308 on the board.
In response, Shamarh Brooks and Kyle Mayers put up 117 runs for the second wicket before both fell in a matter of two overs. However, the hosts kept fighting and the 7th wicket partnership between Romario Shepherd and Akeal Hosein took them close but they fell short of the finish line.
“Disappointed not to get the 100, but it was a good effort by the team. We got a good score in the end. There were nerves in the end and didn’t expect it to turn that way,” Dhawan said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
Dhawan was happy with the result but insisted there is always room to improve. He took home the Player of the Match award for his performance in the first innings.
“We kept our cool and one small change in the end where we pushed the fine leg back and that really helped us. The discussion was to use the bigger side as much as we can and we want to keep on learning and make ourselves better for the rest of the competition,” he added.
The second ODI takes place on July 24, Sunday in Trinidad.
Final scores of WI vs IND, First ODI:
India – 308/7 in 50 overs
West Indies – 305/6 in 50 overs
