Finance
India started their second innings with guns blazing, but rain affects and slowed their progress, restricting the session to only three overs as India reached 118/2 at Tea on the fourth day of the second Test.
After forcing an early lunch, the rain began to fall just as the batsmen were about to enter the field for the afternoon session. Though the rain ceased quickly, the damp ground slowed play and kept the players indoors. When play eventually began, India scored 100 runs off 75 balls on the second ball of the 13th over.
However, India suffered a setback when opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was bowled out in the same over by a slower delivery that landed at a good length spot outside off-stump. Jaiswal attempted a slog-sweep across the line but the bounce got him and the top edge ballooned and keeper Joshua Da Silva pouched an easy catch.
Shubman Gill was batting on 10 at the time of the break, with Ishan Kishan on 8.
Earlier, India stormed to 98/1 in just 12 overs, with skipper Rohit Sharma smashing 57 off 43 deliveries to help India make up for lost time.
Siraj used his inswingers, outswingers, and wobble-seam deliveries to good effect with the second new ball to record his best numbers in an innings in Test cricket.
The West Indies avoided the follow-on in the first innings but could only add 26 runs to their overnight total, giving India a comfortable 183-run advantage.
Rohit came out firing with the bat, smashing five fours and three sixes to share a quick 98-run opening stand with Yashasvi Jaiswal, before whipping straight to fine leg off Shannon Gabriel.
Jaiswal displayed offensive intent from the start as India grabbed a 183-run lead, dancing down the pitch to loft Kemar Roach over extra cover for six. He then added a barrier with a beautiful cut past mid-on. Rohit entered the fray with a thick edge off Alzarri Joseph that went past the second slip for four.
In his ODI batting style, Rohit beautifully flicked Roach over long-on for six, followed by smashing Joseph past point for four. Rohit grabbed a life after drawing Joseph for six when Gabriel dropped a catch off Holder and another shortly after when Kirk McKenzie shelled a chance at square leg.
None of this discouraged Rohit’s aggressive style of play, which reminded many of England’s Bazball effect, as he lofted Joseph for six, flicked Holder in the gap for four, and completed his fifty in 35 balls with a pull past keeper off Gabriel, which was also his fastest half-century in the format.
With Jaiswal getting a brace of fours via pulls, Rohit wonderfully placed a punch off Gabriel in the offside gap before his pull went to the hands of fine leg. After Gill hit his first ball, the heavens opened up for rain, and the players went off, with early lunch called in.
Earlier in the morning, with the second new ball only 5.1 overs old, Mukesh Kumar struck in the opening over of the day, beating Alick Athanaze on the inside edge and trapping him lbw for 37.
Holder pushed hard at a full outswinger from Siraj and nicked behind to wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan for a low catch to his right in the next over. Alzarri Joseph survived a lbw appeal from Siraj on review, but was trapped lbw by the fast bowler’s wobble-seam delivery a ball later.
India’s fielding strategy remained aggressive, with three slips and two men at gully or a deep third man when Siraj bowled. When Mukesh was operating, the field varied between six, five or four slip fielders, and at times three slips, a gully and a leg gully.
That paid off when Roach swiped hard at Siraj’s wide outswinger and took the outside edge behind Kishan. Siraj then trapped Gabriel lbw for a golden duck, giving him his second five-wicket haul in Test cricket. Rohit’s fifty and his stand with Jaiswal put India in command of the match.
Brief scores: India 438 & 118/2 in 15 overs (Rohit Sharma 57, Yashasvi Jaiswal 38; Shannon Gabriel 1-15, Jomel Warrican 1-15) lead West Indies 255 all out in 115.4 overs (Kraigg Brathwaite 75, Alick Athanaze 37; Mohammed Siraj 5-60, Ravindra Jadeja 2-37) by 301 runs.
Source:IANS
