India thrashed West Indies by an innings and 141 runs on the back of Ravichandran Ashwin’s 12-wicket haul and young star Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 171 as the Rohit Sharma-led side started the new WTC cycle on the right note with a big win, here on Saturday.
An outstanding overall display in the first Test has earned India crucial points in the new World Test Championship cycle.
Captain Rohit Sharma showed confidence in the spin bowling abilities of Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, entrusting them to lead the Indian bowling attack on a pitch that provided ample assistance to spinners. Both off-spinners lived up to expectations, picking up 17 of the 20 West Indies wickets in the match.
In the first innings, the 21-year-old Jaiswal formed a formidable 229-run partnership with captain Sharma, with both batters notching up centuries. Jaiswal went on to score a remarkable 171, while the experienced Virat Kohli accompanied him with an excellent knock of 76.
Ashwin showed the world why he is the No.1 ranked Test bowler, further solidifying his reputation by claiming his 34th five-wicket haul – tied for fifth most by any bowler in Test history.
As the second Test approaches in Port of Spain, India will be eager to maintain their momentum, while the hosts will be aiming for an improved performance in order to level the series.
Earlier, till tea, Jadeja and Ashwin combined to take out West Indies openers as the hosts were reduced to 27/2 and trail India by 244 runs.
It was a session where runs came in at snail’s pace — only 48 runs were made while three wickets fell, with India in pole position to win the match after declaring on 421/5, thus grabbing a 271 run lead.
After the declaration, India began with four overs of pace, before turning to Ashwin and Jadeja. As expected, the experienced spinners kept the openers Tagenarine Chanderpaul and captain Kraigg Brathwaite on tight leash with the pitch doing all kinds of tricks in terms of spin and bounce.
Coming in from over the wicket, Jadeja delivered the breakthrough for India by trapping Chanderpaul lbw after beating him on the inside edge.
Despite Ishan Kishan dropping a catch of Brathwaite, the West Indies skipper struggled to break free in his painful 47-ball stay at the crease, including getting off the mark on his 30th ball, before edging to first slip off Ashwin.
Earlier, in the second session, Virat Kohli was out for 76 off Rahkeem Cornwall when he tried to flick on backfoot through leg-side, but the extra bounce took a thick inside edge to leg slip. Kishan’s introduction in Test cricket was a mix of defending, leaving and being beaten twice.
Ravindra Jadeja raked in some boundaries through a cut and creamy cover drive for boundaries. After playing 19 balls, Kishan was finally off the mark in Test cricket with a flick off the hip for a single. As soon as he was off the mark, India declared with a 271-run lead on a pitch showing signals of quick deterioration.
Previously, an impressive Yashasvi Jaiswal crossed 150 early in the first session. But the debutant fell for a massive 171 while Kohli made his 29th Test fifty as India continued to put West Indies under the pump, by adding 88 runs in 29 overs in the first session for the loss of Jaiswal and Ajinkya Rahane.
