Some lusty hitting late in the innings saw the West Indies put up a below-par 129 for 7 against India in their Super 10 tie of the World Twenty20 on Sunday. Some appalling batting meant the defending champions were struggling at 106 for 5 with just two overs remaining on a sluggish pitch at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur. Sent in by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Caribbeans were off to a sluggish start managing just 33 in the first 7 overs. India’s spinners bowled a variety of tweaks and twirls which were far too clever for any of the West Indian batsmen to read. They strangled the run flow with Dhoni rotating his bowlers and made the right moves at the right time. Openers Chris Gayle and Dwane Smith struggled never got going as pacers Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami moved the ball around. Gayle was given two lives but he could not cash in. Gayle top-scored with a 33-ball 34 but his partner Smith struggled to a 29-ball 11. Lendl Simmons who struggled at the start of his innings hit some meaty blows for a 22-ball 27 to propel the score past 120 which looked out of reach at one stage. Amit Mishra and Ravichandran Ashwin, in particular, were outstanding. Mishra put in what looks like a match-winning figures of 4-0-18-2. Ravindra Jadeja bagged three wickets but conceded 48 runs in his four overs. – bdnews24.com
