Kuldeep reels West Indies in, Gill and Kohli tons knock them out
Kuldeep's 4 for 40 on ODI comeback to restrict West Indies to 295 despite a 135-run opening stand between Greaves and Campbell
Kuldeep's 4 for 40 on ODI comeback to restrict West Indies to 295 despite a 135-run opening stand between Greaves and Campbell
Scorer: Thilak Ram | Commentator: Abhijato (@ob_jato)
10.05pm And now we come to an end to this game: Virat Kohli has scaled 15K ODI runs, Gill is back in his prodigious white-ball form, and India are 1-0 up after a dominant win. West Indies will want to regroup ASAPly. For now, from me - Abhijato - as well as Abhimanyu, Thilak and Chetan, goodbye to you all.
Time for the Player of the Match: to Kuldeep Yadav, for his awesome spell of 4 for 40! He's all smiles as he collects the award, genuinely beaming, haha. "I actually loved the batting from Shubman and Virat, it was special innings from them. Sometimes it feels awkward to get POTM award... Personally, I liked my rhythm. I was calm in my rhythm. I bowled whatever I felt like bowling, variations were superb. Frustrating the batters... Always feels nice when you enjoy bowling, when you achieve your best and when you are enjoying your bowling, that's when your performance comes at peak. Sometimes to get your confidence back, you have to have a bowling spell like this... [On his bowling speeds] I still believe there's a lot to improve as a spinner, I believe the rhythm, it's all about your bowling flow. When you are in flow, everything looks so good. I'm going to stick with the same rhythm, that's the most important thing. Any format I play: you have to feel very comfortable in your rhythm... I love football, watching from early age, we are doing really well if you look at the standings, we are No. 1, obviously the style of play we watch in Barcelona, we are very good in that. The most important thing is to enjoy the football."
Now we hear from India captain Shubman Gill. "Honestly when I got out, thought I should have finished the game, satisfying innings for me. Someone like Kuldeep, especially in the middle overs if he is bowling well, he is a wicket-taker. We were on backfoot with their opening partnership, he got us back in the game, at one point it looked like keeping them to 300 was great... [On Kohli's six-hitting] He's batting superbly and I think he's enjoying the game a lot more, playing with freedom, those are the facts of his batting and he always had the game, the ability to clear the boundary at will, he's doing that right now. Someone like him, who's won so many games for India, you let him be and on the day he will win the matches for you. Ideally, yes, we would like an eighth batting option: someone who can contribute at least 20-30 runs. We weren't able to get scores we wanted, but we are open to trying different combinations to see what works for us."
"Maybe 60-80 runs short, to be fair. We're trying to defend a target so we have to make sure everything goes right for you," says WI captain Shai Hope. "We laid a very good foundation, got stuck in the middle, just something to look forward to. We also had a few chances that whatever runs we got, we could defend it. Take all the learnings from here... [Greaves okay?] Hopefully. Unfortunate he couldn't finish the game today."
While we wait for the post-match presentation, how well do you remember your captains - famous ones and the ones slightly less so? Play MATCHUP and find out.
Virat Kohli speaks now! "My focus has never been on these milestones. It's been about focusing on situations, doing the job for the team. Obviously I feel very grateful and blessed for having played so long. Keeping my head down... So many people want to be here, we are blessed to be here. Just an understanding of the game, the stage I'm at, keeping myself physically fit, the game's in the mind. It's all about staying mentally fresh, in the present moment, expressing myself out there. I got a challenge at this stage of my career to up the ante, play a gear or two higher, exciting for me to work on, excites me when you have to unlock a new version in your career, be it playing for India or in the IPL. To follow a free mind, you need a fit body. Then I can visualize my game and executive it the way I did tonight. I'm just grateful and honest, to be honest... We need to look back once and look where we came from. We tend to forget that with the hustle of the world, and the attention and the fame, it's easy to forget where we came from. I enjoy each and every moment out there I play for India. Could have been a possibility I wouldn't have been standing there, could have never played for India. Keep working hard, put a smile on my face, and make other people smile as well. Don't think about all the other stuff outside the field when you get on it, put your body on the line, you have to do it there's no excuses. The World Cup is a year away; I know what my goal is. I just needed to work on different aspects of the game... Run from boundary to boundary, show intensity, keep ticking those boxes, I just want to enjoy every day. [On Gill] When you play with a guy like that, it's not that tough to string a partnership, you can have a conversation here or there, but there's not much that needs to be said to him. Do justice to the talent and ability in this team, up there with the best players in the world."
Marathon post-match interview, that, quite like the best of his ODI innings, I suppose...
9.30pm At the midway stage, West Indies thought they might have been in with a chance: they had mustered 295, a total which looks miniscule in comparison to Kohli's onslaught here. It is his 10th ODI century against West Indies. Once Rohit Sharma fell in his 30s, Kohli and captain Gill combined for a magnificent partnership, with both of them bringing up their centuries as they played the probabilities to perfection through the middle overs. And once Kohli knew the chase was in the bag, he accelerated like only he can. India go 1-0 up in this three-match series.
Our in-house Professor Yash Jha pings with another stat Kohli brought up today. Tonight, he hit the most sixes he ever has in an ODI innings.
Alok: "Kohli is in "I am inevitable" mode right now."
Carty on to bowl for the first time now...
KumarS: "Kohli scoring a century while acing a chase! Is there anyone else close in that stat to him?" -- Shiva from our stats team confirms this will be his 25th hundred in successful chases, 11 more than the next best, Rohit and Tendulkar
There were plenty of movement among bowlers too, with Keshav Maharaj now ranked third, Kuldeep Yadav fifth and Josh Hazlewood tenth
In his 18th year in international cricket, Kohli unlocked a first: reaching his fifty and hundred in an ODI with six
The fast bowler is relishing leading an inexperienced pace attack in the ODI series against West Indies
It's been a rough few months for Kuldeep Yadav, but on Sunday, he served up another reminder of just how good he can be in ODIs
Visitors were 135 for 0 in the 20th over but finished with 295 for 7