India overcame West Indies by 4 wickets in a low-scoring match at the WACA, Perth, on Friday, March 6th. Here are 10 things that turned the tide in India’s favour:
1. Gayle fails again
Chris Gayle can help you win big, but he cannot help you win big matches. He failed yet again, scoring just 21 and making India’s job a lot easier.
2. Shami continues his streak
In Ishant Sharma’s absence, Mohammed Shami has been India’s main man this World Cup. With 3 wickets against the Windies, he has taken his tournament tally to 9 strikes.
3. Support from Mohit Sharma
He wasn’t even supposed to be at the WC and is only here because of Ishant’s injury. But he has done well so far. A wicket here has taken his WC tally to 6.
4. Umesh Yadav’s pace
Yadav’s primary job is to provide pace to India’s bowling. He has to work on his line and length but was somewhat disciplined against the Windies. He finished with a respectable 2/42.
5. Ashwin-Jadeja turn the ball
Who would believe India were playing at Perth! India’s spin duo picked up 3 wickets between them to limit the Windies to 182/10.
6. India did not panic
Chasing a paltry target of 183, India’s top order failed and at one point, they were struggling at 78/4. But the Men In Blue did not panic and held their nerves.
7. Dhoni saves the day
How many times has MSD seen India through in a run chase? He played a mature innings, topscoring with an unbeaten 45 and made sure India crossed the finish line.
8. Assured batting by Ashwin
Ravindra Jadeja has been hopeless with the bat this World Cup. Thankfully for India, Ravichandran Ashwin gave able support to Dhoni. He scored 16 off 32 and stayed with his captain till the end.
9. Too many extras
To be fair to West Indies, India conceded 21 extras while they bowled. But when you’re defending 182, you can’t give away 26 extras and that’s exactly what the Caribbean outfit did. To make matters worse 19 of the 26 runs were wides.
10. Winning momentum
India have now won 8 matches on the trot, equalling their best run at World Cups. They had won their first 3 matches at WC 2015 and carried that momentum into this match. Team India were just too good for the hapless Windies.