India won the match by 119 runs in DLS method
India vs West Indies 3rd ODI; India clean swept West Indies in the rain-interrupted third and final ODI match at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port of Spain by 119 runs after taking an unbeatable 2-0 series lead in the last match. Chasing the target of 257, West Indies were bowled out in 137 in 35 overs. India had reached 225 for three in 36 overs earlier when the match was halted for the second time due to rain.
Earlier, India won the toss and decided to bat. Openers Shikhar Dhawan and Shubhman Gill have done more than enough to lead the match strongly and both scored fifty runs.
India had 115 runs in 24 overs before the match was stopped by rain for the 1st time. Dhawan and Gill pushed India to cross over 100 runs but to sever the partnership, Hayden Walsh Jr fired Dhawan on 58. Captain Dhawan scored his 37th ODI fifty in the match and equaled the record of former Indian captain M. S. Dhoni (29), the most fifty-plus scores away from Asia.
Shubhman Gill was unlucky to fall short of scoring his 1st century but scored an outstanding 98 not out. Gill’s career-best knock led India to reach 225 for 3 in 36 overs which was hampered by rain. After Dhawan bowled out, Shreyas Iyer came to the front and scored 44 runs off 34 balls.
The rain cut short the Indian innings in 36 overs. But it was challenging for West Indies to reach the amended target of 257 runs from 35 overs with Mohammed Siraj’s (2/14 in 3 overs) nearly flawless first over with the ball.
The start was disastrous for West Indies losing K. Mayers and S. Brooks in one over. Shai Hope and Brandon King tried to steady the ship but Hope fell when it was time to accelerate. As Brandon King (42 off 37) and Nicholas Pooran’s (42 off 32) resistance was never going to be strong enough, spinners Yuzvendra Chahal (4/17 in 4 overs), Axar Patel (1/38 in 6 overs), and Shardul Thakur (2/17 in 5 overs) all played an admirable role on a slow-moving surface. Whenever Windies tried to get a move on, they lost a wicket. They never come close to the target as they needed someone big to lead.
All the bowlers bowled well for India and all had a wicket to their name apart from Hooda. Though he kept the match tight and did a good job. Siraj begin the proceedings and Chahal continued it to make sure the lower order doesn’t play much.
Even though all 3 ODIs were played at the same venue, Men in Blue have to be commended for seizing their opportunities and displaying good game when it mattered the most. If they played well under pressure in the 1st game, the lower middle order pulled off a difficult chase in the second game without assistance from the top order. The third game was different with the rain break, as it led to a significant swing in the game’s momentum with the elegant Gill, who altered the game.
Gill scored 205 runs from the 3 games with scores of 64, 43, and 98 not out and he became the player of the series. Gill would be grateful for the series as it has provided him some space in the 50-over format. He was disappointed when it started raining for the second time for not speeding things up to reach 100.
Gill says he wanted to get a ton, but the things are not under his control and he is pleased with how he is played. He admits that he wanted to bat just the one over to get to his ton.
Indian skipper Dhawan says the young squad played brilliantly and added that the maturity they showed was very good. He was pleased with his form. Also, he gave credit to Gill for the way he played.
It was quite an easy win for India. Now the focus moves on to the T20I format. The 2 teams will compete in the 5-match T20I series. The game starts on Friday, 29th July at Brian Lara Cricket Academy.
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