Indore, Oct 11 (IANS) Abhishek Sharma top-scored with 69 off 30 balls before India’s bowlers defended 223 on a dew-free night to beat West Indies by 14 runs in the T20I at the Holkar Stadium here on Sunday, and take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.

Arshdeep Singh returned with figures of 3-44, while Naman Dhir took two scalps. Arshdeep, who took out in-form Shai Hope, along with others ensured that the West Indies big-hitters couldn’t ace a second chase on the trot.

Shamar Springer’s 11-ball 35 not out gave the visitors a late push, but it went in vain, as the West Indies finished on 209/7. The win is also the first victory for a team batting first in the white-ball series so far. It came despite India’s second-half slide, with soft dismissals, had made 223 look below par at one stage, after Abhishek Sharma’s 30-ball 69 had laid the foundation for a big total.

India’s defence began with Mayank Yadav opening with a one-run over, while Arshdeep struck when Hope went for a wild slog, but was castled for one. Shimron Hetmyer then took the attack to the bowlers. After a quiet start, he broke free with a boundary off Mayank in the third over, and was given a life on five when Abhishek dropped a simple chance of him at short third man.

Hetmyer made the most of it by hitting a six and two fours off Arshdeep in the fourth over, as 19 runs came off it. With Mayank and Prince leaking runs, West Indies reached 54/1 at the end of the Powerplay, 33 runs behind India’s 87/1 at the same stage.

Hetmyer carted Dhir for four and six, before being bowled for 43 by a slower delivery from the off-spinner which skidded as well. With Kamil Pooran struggling for timing, West Indies were under pressure and that led to Rovman Powell holing out to deep cover for five, as he went for a loft on a quicker delivery from Axar without reaching to the pitch of the ball.

Pooran launched a late assault on Dhir by hitting three sixes over cow corner, wide long-off and square leg. But Dhir had the last laugh as Pooran tried the same pick-up shot, but couldn’t get under the ball and holed out in the deep for 42.

Sherfane Rutherford and Quention Sampson tried resurrecting the innings with some lusty boundaries, before the latter holed out to long-off on Nitish Kumar Reddy’s bowling. When Arshdeep took out Keemo Paul and Rutherford in four balls of the 18th over, it made the result a foregone conclusion in India’s favour, despite some last over boundary hitting from Springer, who looted three sixes and a four off Axar.

Previously, Abhishek’s blistering fifty, laced with six fours and five sixes, as well as an aggressive 108-run stand with Ishan Kishan had India on course for a score close to 250. But losing wickets at regular intervals, with several of them coming via soft dismissals and mix-ups, allowed the visitors to claw their way back and kept India to a total that looked well short of what they had threatened to post.

Pushed into batting first, India made only 11 runs in the first two overs. After Roston Chase bowled the opening over and gave away four runs, Shamar Joseph removed Sanju Samson in the second over, as the opener mistimed a flick off a 150.8 kmph delivery to mid-wicket for three.

Abhishek then changed the complexion of the innings – against Chase in the third over, he began by driving inside-out through cover-point for his first boundary, before lofting another inside-out drive over cover for six and ended the over with a second six going over point.

After Kishan hit Paul for three fours, Springer’s fifth over was taken for runs by him and Abhishek. A chip over point for four by Kishan was followed by Abhishek lofting two successive balls over cover for four before slamming a length delivery over the same region for six, as 21 runs came off it.

21 more runs came off Joseph’s next over, beginning with a cut by Ishan for four. Abhishek followed it up with a six over cover and then chipped a four over mid-wicket followed. A pull to the right of deep mid-wicket fetched him two runs to complete his 14th T20I fifty off 18 balls.

Abhishek then backed away and squeezed a four past point, as India ended the power-play at 87/1. During the course of his fifty, Abhishek became the fastest batter to reach 2,000 T20I runs in terms of balls faced (1,024) during his innings. He and Kishan continued to hit boundaries till the West Indies brought a twist in the game.

Chase ended the 108-run second-wicket stand in the ninth over when he cramped a stepping out Kishan for room with an incoming delivery and Hope stumped him from behind. Chase later trapped skipper Shreyas Iyer lbw for one in the same over, before Abhishek fell for 69 by top-edging a pull to Springer, who took the return catch and Gudakesh Motie got his 50th T20I wicket when Dhir holed out to long-off.

With India in a spot of bother, Tilak Varma and Reddy tried rebuilding the innings by hitting two fours each off Joseph in the 13th over, before the latter was caught behind off Paul for 21. After that, India were dealt a double blow by mix-ups – believing that Axar’s flick off Gudakesh had gone for four, he bumped fists with Varma while returning for the second run.

But Pooran had kept the ball in play at deep square leg, and Shai Hope’s throw to Motie found Varma well short of his crease to dismiss him for 28. Axar himself fell to a run-out when he pushed a Springer delivery to point and showed no interest in a run, only to find Arshdeep already halfway down the pitch.

Axar set off belatedly, but Paul and Springer combined to complete the run-out and dismiss him for 20. After Arshdeep was trapped lbw by Springer, Prince added valuable runs to India’s score by heaving, scooping and edging Joseph for three boundaries, before the pacer ended the innings by castling Mayank with a pacy yorker.

Brief Scores: India 223 all out in 20 overs (Abhishek Sharma 69, Ishan Kishan 37; Roston Chase 2-38, Shamar Springer 2-50) beat West Indies 209/7 in 20 overs (Shimron Hetmyer 43, Kamil Pooran 42; Arshdeep Singh 3-44, Naman Dhir 2-39) by 14 runs.

–IANS

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