Antigua, June 29 (IANS) Fresh from a 105-run win, a dominant India will aim to take a 2-0 lead when they face a lacklusture West Indies in the third tie of the five-match One-day International (ODI) series at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium here on Friday.

After the wash-out in the opening match, the hosts failed to match the men-in-blue, falling to a massive loss in the second game.

Ahead of the third game, the West Indies strengthened their line-up with the addition of two new batsmen in Kyle Hope and wicketkeeper-batsman Sunil Ambris.

Barring Shai Hope, who struck 81 runs and looked to pull out a fight chasing 311 runs in the previous ODI, none of the other batsmen -- Evin Lewis (21), Jason Holder (29), Roston Chase (33 not out) -- succeeded in converting their starts.

Among the bowlers, off-spinner Ashley Nurse managed to test the famed Indian line-up to a certain extent. Nurse returned with figures of 1/38 in his nine-over spell, bowling at an economy of 4.22 runs per over.

Pacer Alzarri Joseph (2/73), Miguel Cummins (1/57) and medium-pacer Jason Holder (1/76) will look to bowl economically after giving away too many runs in the previous match.

On the other hand, the visitors will look to play their natural game, having found it easy to score runs against the hosts.

The batting line-up featuring the likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni will look to demolish the West Indies bowling.

Skipper Kohli also hinted at including rookie keeper-batsman Rishabh Pant for the third match, which may result in Yuvraj or Dhoni warming the bench.

Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav (3/50) tormented the hosts well and will once again be Kohli's go-to bowler during the middle overs.

Teams

India: Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (Captain), Hardik Pandya, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (WK), Kuldeep Yadav, Kedar Jadhav, Rishabh Pant, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin, Dinesh Karthik.

West Indies: Jason Holder (Captain), Sunil Ambris (WK), Devendra Bishoo, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Kyle Hope, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Ashley Nurse, Kieran Powell, Rovman Powell.

The post Dominant India look to outclass Windies in third ODI appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Port of Spain, June 22 (IANS) Amid the off-field controversies over the exit of head coach Anil Kumble, ICC Champions Trophy runners-up India start as favourites in the first of the five-match ODI series against a lacklusture West Indies at the Queen's Park Oval here on Friday.

On paper, the West Indies are currently no match for the men-in-blue, specially after Jason Holder's men were held by callow Afghanistan to a 1-1 draw in the brief One-day International (ODI) rubber earlier this month.

Compared to the visitors, who can boast of a collective total of 776 matches among the trio of Yuvraj Singh (301), Mahendra Singh Dhoni (291) and Virat Kohli (184), the West Indies have a cumulative ODI experience of 213 matches between 13 players, skipper Holder being the most-capped player among them with 58 matches to his name.

For India, this series is also an ideal platform to test the team's bench strength. With Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah from the Champions Trophy squad absent on the tour, Kohli will be tempted to play Ajinkya Rahane at the top besides giving Mohammed Shami a chance in place of Bumrah.

Shami has not played any official ODI since the 2015 World Cup semi-final, after which he had multiple surgeries and only played a few Test matches.

In the batting order, Kohli may induct the hard-hitting Rishabh Pant, the new addition to the squad, while Dinesh Karthik may get a few games if Yuvraj or Kedar Jadhav are rested.

Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav is likely to get his chance in place of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin or left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja -- both of whom were unimpressive during the ICC Champions Trophy.

On the other hand, the hosts will bank on their pace battery led by Holder and comprising Alzarri Joseph, Shannon Gabriel, Rovman Powell, and spinners Ashley Nurse and Roston Chase.

The No.9 ranked side will also expect their top order batsmen containing the likes of Evin Lewis, Kieran Powell and Shai Hope to fire, if they are to pose any threat to the No.3-ranked visitors.

Squads:
India: Virat Kohli (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (WK), Hardik Pandya, Kedar Jadhav, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Umesh Yadav.

West Indies: Jason Holder (Captain), Jonathan Carter, Miguel Cummins, Alzarri Joseph, Jason Mohammed, Kieran Powell, Kesrick Williams, Devendra Bishoo, Roston Chase, Shai Hope (WK), Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Rovman Powell.

The post India clear favourites against inconsistent West Indies appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Los Angeles, Nov 19 (IANS) Reality TV star Kim Kardashian took her children North and Saint West to meet her brother Rob Kardashian and Model Blac Chyan's newborn daughter Dream.

The "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" star and her husband Kanye West had sent their niece two pairs of baby Yeezy sneakers, as seen in a photograph that Rob shared on Instagram last week.

A source told eonline.com that the 36-year-old recently brought along her two children North, 3 and Saint West 11 months old to visit Rob and Blac Chyna's house.

"Thank you KimYe. Baby yeezys...," Rob wrote alongside the photograph of Kim's gift.

While Rob was grateful for Kim's present for Dream, the "Rob & Chyna" star was recently upset with his sister Kendall Jenner for disrespecting his daughter's name during her appearance on "The Late Late Show with James Corden".

The post Kim takes her kids to meet baby Dream appeared first on Social News XYZ.

In the five-day match, only 22 overs could be played at the Queen's Park Oval due to soggy conditions following heavy rain.

The abandoning of the final match of the India-West Indies series has led to wide criticism for the failure of TTCB to ensure proper infrastructure at the venue to deal with inclement weather conditions.

"As hosts, the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board and QPCC (Queen's Park Cricket Club) regret that limited play was possible in the 4th Test Match between WI and India at the Queen's Park Oval," TTCB President Azim Bassarath said in a statement on Monday.

"We have jointly launched an investigation to determine what occurred with a view to remedying the situation so that this does not occur in the future. Once this has been done, it will be presented to the WICB (West Indies Cricket Board)."

India won the four Test series 2-0. But lack of action forced India to relinquish top spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings to Pakistan, less than a week after taking over the position from Australia.

Rain stopped play on the first day of the match when the West Indies were 62 for two. No further play could be held over the next four days.

The post Trinidad board to probe India Test washout appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Though the day began on a bright and sunny note, the outfield remained water-logged due to overnight rains and many areas around were dug up to dry in sunshine in the absence of super sopper with the ground staff for faster drying.

Unlike in the past three days, umpires Red Tucker and Nigel Llong decided not to inspect the ground again and ruled out play for the day even before the first session could begin.

India's head coach Anil Kumble, skipper Virat Kohli and manager Riyaz Bagwan were on the ground when the umpires walked into to inspect its condition, especially in the outfield around.

Expressing anguish and disappoint over the loss of play from post-lunch session on first day (Thursday) till Sunday, Kohli tweeted that "...rains are annoying when a match is going on #TestOfPatience."

Heavy downpour on the first day washed off rest of the game after 105 minutes of play when the hosts were on 62/2 after 22 overs.

Unlike in the third Test at St Lucia last week, which India won by a huge 237-run margin on August 13, Windies skipper Jason Holder opted to bat first on winning the toss.

Opener Kraigg Brathwaite (32) and veteran batsman Marlon Samuels (4) were at the crease when rain interrupted the match ahead of lunch.

The hosts got off to a poor start, losing opener Leon Johnson (9) and one-down Darren Bravo (10) cheaply to seamer Ishant Sharma and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin respectively.

The visitors, eyeing to consolidate their numero uno status in Test cricket, went in with a different strategy in the match with Kohli preferring an additional batsman in contrast to his usual six batsman-five bowlers' theory.

India lead the four-match series 2-0, after the second Test at St. Kitts ended in a draw.

Brief Scores: West Indies 62/2 (Kraigg Brathwaite 32 not out, Darren Bravo 10, Marlon Samuels 4 not out; Ishant Sharma 1/7, Ravichandran Ashwin 1/22) vs India.

The post Fourth Test heads for draw as no play on penultimate day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Though it has been sunny and bright since morning, the first two-hour session was lost after heavy downpour cut short play on the first day from post-lunch session and left the ground with pools of rain water all around on Thursday.

"Umpire Red Tucker and Nigel Llong, who inspected the ground at 11.30 a.m., decided to inspect again at 1 p.m., as they were not satisfied with the ground conditions because the infield was still soft," an official said.

Play is expected to resume in the post-lunch session if the outfield dries up and continue till the last session with no further rain or thunderstorm as predicted.

Heavy rains and thunderstorms subsequently washed off rest of the game after an hour and 45 minutes of play when the hosts were 62/2 in 22 overs.

Unlike in the third Test at St Lucia last week, which India won by a huge 237 run margin on August 13, Windies skipper Jason Holder opted to bat first on winning the toss on Thursday.

Opener Kraigg Brathwaite (32) and veteran batsman Marlon Samuels (4) were at the crease when rain interrupted the match ahead of lunch.

The hosts got off to a poor start, losing opener Leon Johnson (9) and one-down Darren Bravo (10) cheaply to seamer Ishant Sharma and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin respectively.

The visitors, eyeing to consolidate their numero uno status in Test cricket, went in with a different strategy in the match with skipper Virat Kohli preferring an additional batsman in contrast to his usual six batsman-five bowlers theory.

With no let-up in the rain, the umpires called of the game for the day.

India lead the four-match series 2-0, after the second Test at St. Kitts ended in a draw.

Brief Scores: West Indies 62/2 (Kraigg Brathwaite 32 not out, Darren Bravo 10, Marlon Samuels 4 not out, Ishant Sharma 1/7, Ravichandran Ashwin 1/22) vs India.

The post 4th Test: Wet outfield delays play on second day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Opener Kraigg Brathwaite (32) and veteran batsman Marlon Samuels (4) were at the crease until the rain interruption as India managed to sneak in two quick wickets in the first hour of play, where only 22 overs could be bowled.

Winning the toss and electing bat, the hosts were off to a poor start losing opener Leon Johnson (9) and one-down Darren Bravo (10) cheaply.

The visitors, eyeing to consolidate their numero uno status in Test cricket, went in with a different strategy in the match with skipper Virat Kohli preferring an additional batsman in contrast to his usual six batsman-five bowlers theory.

Unfazed with the new combination, pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami gave India a good start from which first change seamer Ishant Sharma and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin benefited by taking the wickets of Johnson and Bravo respectively.

With the rains refusing to stay away, the umpires called for lunch.

India lead the four-match series 2-0, after the second Test at St. Kitts ended in a draw.

Brief Scores: West Indies 62/2 (Kraigg Brathwaite 32 not out, Darren Bravo 10, Marlon Samuels 4 not out, Ishant Sharma 1/7, Ravichandran Ashwin 1/22) vs India.

The post Rain halts first session as Windies reach 62/2 in fourth Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Sri Lanka left-arm spinner Rangana Herath has returned among the top five of the Test bowlers after registering his seventh 10-wicket haul which helped Sri Lanka to win the third Test by 163 runs and a 3-0 series win against Australia.

Herath, 38, recorded figures of six for 81 and seven for 64 in the Colombo Test, which has helped him to move three places up to fifth in the latest rankings.

The bowlers' list is headed by England's James Anderson, who leads Ashwin by 12 points with 870 points. Dale Steyn, who will feature in the upcoming series against New Zealand, is third, 17 points behind the India off-spinner.

Colombo Test centurions Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva have also made significant gains in Test batsmen.

Chandimal raised six slots to reach the 17th spot in a list which is headed by Australia captain Steve Smith, while de Silva has shot up 30 places to the 37th position. Kaushal Silva, who scored 115 in the second innings, has also moved up nine places to 39th.

For Australia, opener David Warner has gained one place to share ninth spot with New Zealand's Ross Tyalor, while Shaun Marsh, who struck the first century for Australia on the Sri Lanka tour in Colombo, has jumped 13 places to reach the 33rd rank.

Smith, who scored 119 runs in the first innings, has retained his number-one ranking.

The post Ashwin retains second spot in ICC Test bowlers ranking appeared first on Social News XYZ.

The hosts have made one change bringing in leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo in place of young pacer Alzarri Joseph while Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara made it to the playing XI for India replacing Shikhar Dhawan and Ravindra Jadeja.

Earlier, the toss was delayed because of a wet outfield. Top-ranked India lead the four-match series 2-0 while the second Test at Kingston was drawn.

India:
Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Cheteshwar Pujara, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma

West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite, Leon Johnson, Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Jermaine Blackwood, Roston Chase, Shane Dowrich (wk), Jason Holder (Captain), Devendra Bishoo, Miguel Cummins, Shannon Gabriel

The post Windies elect to bat in fourth Test against India appeared first on Social News XYZ.

India have returned to No.1 spot in the longest format of the game replacing Australia who suffered a 0-3 whitewash at the hands of hosts Sri Lanka in Colombo on Wednesday.

To retain the top ranking, India will now have to win the fourth and final Test of the four-match series against the West Indies, which begins here on Thursday.

India registered a 237-run win in the third Test and took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-match series, after winning the first Test by an innings and 92 runs, the second ending in a draw.

"Even last year, when we beat South Africa, because of some other team losing, we became number one for a brief period. To really become the best team in the world you need to play consistent cricket for a span of 3-4 years. This is a pretty immediate and short-term incentive," Kohli told reporters here on Wednesday.

"It's a nice incentive but it doesn't really change anything for the team. Our goal has been to play good cricket and we've done that in the past year or so. And we want to continue with the same."

"You have to play sustained cricket for a good period of time to be the best team in the world. We have played good cricket that's why we have climbed up the rankings, but if you see we have played lesser number of games than the other teams," he added.

"It's only after we play a good number of games that we can be judged. We've played good cricket but I think only at the end of the season can we look back how we have played and then figure out where we stand."

With the team's batting clicking in the previous three matches, the Anil Kumble-coached side is unlikely to make big changes in the line-up.

With opener Murali Vijay fit after a thumb injury, Shikhar Dhawan may be dropped for the final match to make way for him. Dhawan has hardly scored much except for his 84 in the first match.

But with Lokesh Rahul in good form, scoring a century and a 50 in two Tests, Kohli might stick to the right-handed batsman for the final match. Besides Rahul, Ajinkya Rahane would also hold his place after handy knocks.

"If the wickets are drastically changing from one venue to the other, you will see a change here and there, especially with one bowler playing in front of the other. As far as the pool goes, we have a very good squad here," the Delhi-born skipper said.

"The stand-by players we have back home have the skill-set as well. Everyone has been briefed about the roles they have to play. We have players who are ready accordingly."

"One or two spots obviously will be available. But we can't make too many changes in one series. And with a long season coming up, we are playing games at home too. So we want players to know that they are in the starting 11 so that they can prepare accordingly. We have done that pretty well in the last year-and-a-half," the 27-year-old added.

Speaking about the nature of pitch for the final match, the skipper said, "I had a look at the pitch yesterday (on Tuesday). There were a few damp spots. The covers came on very quickly today (on Wednesday) so I don't know how much that has dried up. We would name a few more than the 11 tonight before taking a call on what would be the best combination in the morning."

The post India has to be consistent to be best Test team: Kohli appeared first on Social News XYZ.

India registered a 237-run win in the third Test and took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-match series, after winning the first Test by an innings and 92 runs, the second ending in a draw.

A big margin win against the hosts will ensure Virat Kohli-led side a place in the top of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings replacing Australia.

With the team's batting licking in the previous three matches, Anil Kumble-coached side is unlikely to make big changes in the line-up.

With opener Murali Vijay fit after a thumb injury, one can expect Shikhar Dhawan to be dropped for the final match and Vijay being given a chance. Dhawan has hardly scored much except his 84 in the first match.

But with Lokesh Rahul in good form, scoring a century and a 50 in two Tests, Kohli might stick to the right-handed batsman for the final match. Besides Rahul, Ajinkya Rahane would also hold his place after handy knocks.

Rohit Sharma, who was given a chance in the third Test, is likely to be persisted with and Cheteshwar Pujara would then miss out from the playing XI.

Skipper Kohli despite being the top run-getter in the series with 251 runs will aim to get some more runs under his belt ahead of the gruelling Test season lined up at home.

In the bowling department, with the long Test season lined up ahead, seniors Ishant Sharma or Mohammad Shami might be rested which might pave way for Umesh Yadav or Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur.

On the other hand, the hosts have failed to prove themselves consistently with the bat, failing to score a big total in three outings.

Senior batsmen Marlon Samuels and Darren Bravo will have to take the responsibility and score big to have any hopes of ending the series with a consolation win.

Besides the experienced duo, the young batsmen in the side will have to step up to prove a point.

In the bowling department, skipper Jason Holder will have to take the responsibility to lead the attack again along with Carlos Brathwaite, Shannon Gabriel and Miguel Cummins while leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo is the lone specialist spinner in the team.

The squads:

India: Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Ravindra Jadeja, Stuart Binny, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohd. Shami, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma.

West Indies: Jason Holder (captain), Kraigg Brathwaite, Shai Hope, Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Jermaine Blackwood, Roston Chase, Leon Johnson, Shane Dowrich (wk), Devendra Bishoo, Carlos Brathwaite, Shannon Gabriel, Miguel Cummins, Alzarri Joseph.

The post India eye No.1 Test spot with big win versus West Indies appeared first on Social News XYZ.

India scored a dramatic 237-run win in the third Test and took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the four-match series against the West Indies at the Darren Sammy National Cricket stadium here on Saturday.

Chasing an imposing 346-run target on the fifth and final day of the match, the West Indies were bundled out for 108 in 47.3 overs during the post-lunch session.

India had won first Test by an innings and 92 runs at Antigua and the West Indies drew the second Test at Kingston in Jamaica.

The fourth Test will be played at Port of Spain from August 18-22.

"Bhuvneshwar Kumar was amazing in the afternoon, and picking up five wickets for 28 runs on that pitch in 24 overs was a great spell. That really changed things around for us. Not to forget the first innings, where the way Wriddhiman Saha and R. Ashwin batted was really top class Test cricket as well," Kohli told reporters after the win.

"The team is feeling really good, especially because we didn't have a day of play in Jamaica and fifth day was really testing for us. We didn't get the result we wanted. Here also we played two good days of Test cricket, then lost day 3, but again on day 4 bowlers came back and executed what we wanted to."

"So the team is really happy that we could execute our plans and wrap up the series here. Now we can play with more positive intent in Trinidad and express ourselves fully and understand the areas we still need to improve on," he added.

Darren Bravo was the only batsman in the West Indies' second innings who put up some resistance with a fighting 59. But he quickly ran out partners and was eventually dismissed by Indian pacer Mohammed Shami which left the West Indies struggling at 95/8.

Mohammad Shami was the pick of the Indian bowlers with three wickets in the second innings, while Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja shared two each. Bhuveneshwar and Ravichandran Ashwhin bagged one wicket each.

"In bowling we replaced Umesh Yadav with Bhuvi because we felt that since the ground is so good it would be easier to maintain the shine on the ball. The pitch was also hard so there was carry. Bhuvi gave us the results, gave us breakthroughs with the second new ball," the Delhi-born said.

"If you make three changes you might feel that it might to be too strong a reaction. But we realised that if we have to seal the series here then we had to make changes according to the conditions," the skipper added.

Wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha and Ashwin struck centuries each to rescue India after an early batting collapse and Kohli credited the duo and termed the 200-plus run partnership as the best in the series.

"You are in a positive frame of mind. If you are sceptical, if you are hesitant you will not get the result. I think everyone was hungry to change things around after Jamaica because we understood that we have the momentum, we are playing good cricket, and we are on top in ever Test match so we need to finish things off," the 27-year-old said.

"I am really glad people stepped up at the right time and did the job for us. Even Saha and Ashwin in the first innings, and that was probably the most important partnership in the series. We had quite a few but that for me stands out till now in terms of where the series has gone."

"We have been able to seal the game because of the effort of those two. If we lost two more wickets you never know we wouldn't have been on top in the Test match. Lot of credit goes to those two as well," Kohli signed off.

The post Bhuvneshwar’s five-for changed things for India: Virat Kohli appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Chasing an imposing 346-run target on the fifth and final day of the match, the West Indies collapsed for 108 in 47.3 overs during the post-lunch session at the Darren Sammy National Cricket stadium here on Saturday.

India had won first Test by an innings and 92 runs at Antigua on July 24 and ther West Indies drew the second Test at Kingston in Jamaica on August 4. The fourth Test will be played at Port of Spain from August 18-22.

The visitors, who had a 128-run lead from the first innings, declared their second innings after 48 overs in the first hour of the morning session.

BCCI President Anurag Thakur praised the Indian team, skipper Virat Kohli and head coach Anil Kumble for the country's rare Test series victory in the Caribbeans in the longest format of the game.

"On behalf of everyone in Indian cricket I would like to congratulate Team India on their series win in West Indies. This is a result of their dedicated effort, which has translated into a series of successful performances. I also congratulate Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble for this victory," Thakur said in a release.

Mohammed Shami was the pick of the Indian bowlers with three wickets, while Ishant and Ravindra Jadeja shared two each. Bhuveneshwar Kumar and Ravichandran Ashwhin bagged one wicket each.

BCCI Secretary Ajay Shirke also said, "My hearty congratulations to the Indian Cricket team on the Test series win in the West Indies. The team can be very proud of what they have achieved."

The post BCCI congratulates India for Test series win against West Indies appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Chasing an imposing 346-run target on the fifth and final day of the match, West Indies collapsed for 108 in 47.3 overs during the post-lunch session.

India had won first Test by an innings and 92 runs at Antigua on July 24 and drew the second Test at Kingston in Jamaica on August 4.

The fourth Test will be played at Port of Spain from August 18-22.

The visitors, who had a 128-run lead from the first innings, declared their second innings after 48 overs in the first hour of the morning session.

Darren Bravo was the only batsman in the West Indies' second innings who put up some resistance with a fighting 59. But he quickly ran out partners and was eventually dismissed by Indian pacer Mohammed Shami which left the West Indies struggling at 95/8.

Bravo's 100-ball stay in the middle was studded with one six and five boundaries.

Though Bravo and Marlon Samuels tried to defy the Indian bowling attack and added 29 runs for the third wicket partnership, the latter was first to go when his off-stump cart-wheeled by a beauty from Ishant Sharma.

Shami was the pick of the Indian bowlers with three wickets, while Ishant and Ravindra Jadeja shared two each. Bhuveneshwar Kumar and Ravichandran Ashwhin bagged one wicket each.

Roston Chase and Jermaine Blackwood did not last long as they got out cheaply under pressure. While Bravo survived at one-end, keeper Shane Dowrich (5) and captain Jason Holder (1) exited in the 38th and 40th overs.

A brilliant throw by Aswhin ran out Holder (1).

Tailenders Aljarri Joseph (0) and Shannon Gabriel (11) were packed off in a span of final overs while Cummins remained not out with 2 runs.

Walking into the middle to draw the match or avert a defeat again, Windies openers Kraig Brathwaite and Leon Johnson found the going tough, as Shami and Kumar swung the ball both ways to unsettle them.

As planned, Shami made Johnson pop an easy catch to Rohit Sharma at short leg for a duck in the fourth over, while Kumar trapped Brathwaite leg before in the following over for four in 20 balls to reduce the hosts to 4/2 in five overs.

Earlier, resuming the innings from the overnight score of 157/3 in 39 overs on a sunny but humid day, India lost four wickets for just 60 runs in nine overs to an attacking bowling, especially by Cummins.

Sharma, who scored a breezy 41 in 59 balls with three mighty sixes and a boundary on the fourth day (Friday), was the first to go when a straight delivery from Cummins trapped him leg before for the same score.

Though Indian wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha (14 in 14 balls) and Ravindra Jadeja (16 in 13 balls) made useful contributions to the score and helped Rahane to rotate the strike with quick singles and twos, both fell to Cummins who was in great form.

Brief scores: India 353 & 217/7 (Ajinkya Rahane 78 not out; Roston Chase 1/41) vs West Indies 225 & 108 (Darren Bravo 59; Mohammed Shami 3/15)

The post India knock out Windies in third Test to win series appeared first on Social News XYZ.

At stumps on Friday, India were sitting pretty at 157/3 in 39 overs, with Ajinkya Rahane (51 in 93 balls) and Rohit Sharma (41 in 57 balls) at the crease after bundling out the West Indies for 225 in 103.4 overs in the first innings in reply to 353 in 129.4 overs.

Though India lost three early wickets including skipper Virat Kohli and openers Lokesh Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan when the score was 72 in 16.3 overs, Rahane and Sharma raced against time to an unbeaten 85-run fourth wicket partnership in 15 overs.

Maintaining his form, Rahane crossed the 50-run mark and Sharma made up for a paltry 9 in the first innings to accelerate the run rate to 4.02 per over with three mighty sixes and one boundary.

It remains to be seen how long India will play on the last day (Saturday) to declare the innings with a challenging target of 350 plus for the Windies to bite the bullet, as play will be for 98 overs to make up for the loss of the third day's play due to heavy rain and thunderstorms on Thursday.

Earlier, the Windies top and middle order wilted under pressure from Kumar, who was the pick of the Indian bowlers, while Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja shared the remaining two wickets during the post-lunch session.

Though the new pair of Marlon Samuels and Jermaine Blackwood tried to consolidate the innings and took the score past 200 runs in the 87th over, Kumar scalped both of them with accurate bowling to the stumps, aided by seam and windy conditions.

With a flurry of in-swingers and out-swingers, Kumar had Blackwood caught in the second slip by Kohli in the 88th over for 20 in 86 balls and clean bowled Samuels in the 90th over for 48 in 107 balls, with seven boundaries and a six, the only one in the Windies' first innings.

A quick exit of the middle order duo forced the Windies' keeper Shane Dowirch and all-rounder Roston Chase to be defensive and play on to avoid losing further wickets.

But that was not to be, as Jadeja had Chase caught in the slips by Rahane in the following over (91st) for just 2 in 12 balls, while Kumar got the Windies' skipper Jason Holder plumb before the wicket in the 94th over for only 2 in 11 balls.

Holder's quick exit exerted more pressure on the tailenders, as the team lost four key wickets in a span of four overs for 10 runs to 212 from 202.

The magical bowling spell of Kumar and Ashwin also troubled Test debutant Alzarri Jospeh, and Miguelo Cummins who were out for ducks, while Shannon Gabriel remained not out zero after Kumar made Dowrich snick the ball to Dhawan in the slip for 18 in 38 balls.

Resuming at 107/1 in 47 overs under bright sunshine after heavy rain washed out play on Thursday, opener Kraigg Brathwaite and one-down Darren Bravo tried to settle down for a long haul by dodging the Indian spin-cum-pace combo and batting at ease to accelerate the run-rate.

Taking advantage of the seam and turn in the pitch, Indian skipper Kohli had deployed spin at one end and pace at the other to separate the duo.

As both were getting into form, southpaw Bravo top-edged a Sharma rising ball to Jadeja's waiting hands at fine leg when he was at 29 in 101 balls with three boundaries and the Windies were 129/1 in the 56th over.

The second wicket partnership was 70.

After two overs and six runs, it was the turn of Braithwaite to exit, as he snicked a turning ball from Ashwin to keeper Wriddhiman Saha behind even as he was going strong at 64 in 163 balls with six boundaries.

Brief scores: India 353 (first innings) and 157/3 in second innings in 39 overs. Rahane 51, Sharma 41. Cummins 2/23.

West Indies 225 (first innings) Kraigg Brathwaite 64, Samuels 48, Johnson 23, Bravo 29, Blackwood 20 and Dowrich 18. Bhuvneshwar Kumar 5/33, Ashwin 2/52

The post India dominate as Bhuvneshwar wrecks Windies appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Bhuvneshwar's last Test was in Australia in January last year, as he has been playing limited-overs cricket, but due to injury problems he has been in and out of the playing XI.

He claimed five wickets for 33 to bundle out the West Indies for 225 runs in the first innings of the third Test. At stumps on Day 4 on Friday, the visitors were leading by overall 285 runs with a day to play.

"There was no pressure as such but if you are playing after so long there are some nerves, whatever format you play. If I play in club cricket even then I have some nerves. But when I came to the ground and bowled the first ball everything felt normal," Bhuvneshwar told reporters after the fourth day's play on Friday.

"Maybe because I was thinking only about the process and focussing on that came from practice. I practice the way I am bowling in the match but it is not easy to sit outside for so long and then come back. It is not frustrating always, but it is not easy either," he added.

India reached 157/3 in their second innings, with Ajinkya Rahane (51 not out) and Rohit Sharma (41 not out) remaining unbeaten.

The 26-year-old said that he did not think he would claim five wickets after his return to the longest format of the game.

"The biggest point was that the ball was swinging and when that happens it is a boost for me. I have a better chance to take wickets. After lunch, I could do that and when you get one wicket you get confidence that you can take more wickets."

"When I was bowling it was the same in my mind that these are the 7-8 overs in which I can take wickets. I did not think I would take five wickets but that comes with the momentum," he added.

"We had a talk within the team if we can get them out before tea we will have enough time to get them out twice. We discussed our plans and we knew what we had to do. So our mindset was such that we had to get them out quickly if we had to win the match," the Meerut-born said.

The post Playing a Test after so long made me nervous: Bhuvneshwar appeared first on Social News XYZ.

At tea on Friday, India were 49/1 from eight overs in second innings for the loss of Lokesh Rahul, who made a breezy 28 of 24 balls with three boundaries.

After losing two wickets and posting 194/3 in 83 overs during the first session from 107/1 in 47 overs on Wednesday, the hosts collapsed to 225 in 103.4 overs, as their top and middle order wilted under pressure from Kumar, who was the pick of the Indian bowlers.

Star off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravidra Jadeja shared the remaining two West Indies wickets during the post-lunch session.

Though the new pair of Marlon Samuels and Jermaine Blackwood tried to consolidate the innings and took the score past 200-run in the 87th over, Kumar scalped both of them with accurate bowling to the stumps, aided by seam and windy conditions.

Kumar had Blackwood caught at the second slip by skipper Virat Kohli in the 88th over for 20 in 86 balls and clean bowled Samuels in the 90th over for 48 in 107 balls, with seven boundaries and a six, the only one in the Windies' first innings.

A quick exit of the middle order duo forced West Indies wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich and all-rounder Roston Chase to be defensive to avoid losing further wickets.

But it was not to be, as Jadeja had Chase caught by Ajinkya Rahane at the slips in the following over (91st) for just 2 in 12 balls, while Kumar trapped Windies' skipper Jason Holder leg before in the 94th over for only 2 in 11 balls.

Holder's quick exit exerted more pressure on the tail-enders, as the team lost four key wickets in a span of 4 overs for 10 runs to 212 from 202.

The magical bowling spell of Kumar and Ashwin also troubled Test debutant Alzarri Jospeh, and Ashwin Miguelo Cummins who were out for ducks, while Shannon Gabriel remained not out zero after Kumar made keeper Shane Dowrich snick the ball to Shikar Dhawan in the slip for 18 in 38 balls.

Brief scores: India: 353 & 49/1 vs West Indies 225 (Kraigg Brathwaite 64, Samuels 48, Johnson 23, Bravo 29; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 5/33, Ravichandran Ashwin 2/52)

The post Bhuvneshwar claims fiver as India dismiss Windies for 225 appeared first on Social News XYZ.

With 194/3 in 83 overs at lunch, Windies were trailing 159 runs behind India's first innings total of 353.

Resuming at 107/1 in 47 overs under bright sunshine after heavy rains washed out play on Thursday, opener Kraigg Brathwaite and one-down Darren Bravo tried to settle down for a long haul by dodging the Indian spin-cum-pace combo and batting at ease to accelerate the run rate per over.

Taking advantage of the seam and turn in the pitch, Indian skipper Virat Kohli had deployed the spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja at one end and pacers Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami from the other to separate the duo.

As both were getting into form, southpaw Bravo top edged a rising ball from Sharma into Jadeja's hands at fine leg when he was at 29 off 101 balls with three boundaries and Windies were on 129/1.

The second wicket partnership yielded 70 runs.

After two overs and six runs, it was the turn of Craig Braithwaite to exit, as he snicked a turning ball from Ashwin to Indian wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha even as he was going strong at 64 from 163 balls with six boundaries.

The new pair of Marlon Samuels (39) and Jermaine Blackwood (20) were at the crease when lunch was called after 37 overs in the extended first session.

Sharma and Ashwin shared the bowling honours with one wicket each.

Brief scores: India (first innings): 353 vs West Indies (first inings): 194/3 (Brathwaite 64, Johnson 23, Bravo 29; Ishant Sharma 1/40, Ravichandran Ashwin 1/51).

The post Windies lose early wickets on fourth day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Though the first session was to start 30 minutes early to make up for the loss of a whole day, the officials decided to stick to the schedule time after umpires inspected the ground to check if it was dry and fit to resume play.

In reply to India's 353 in the first innings, West Indies resumed their first innings under bright sunshine from Wednesday's score of 107/1 in 47 overs, with opener Kraigg Brathwaite (53) and one-down Darren Bravo (18) at the crease.

According to the revised hours of play, the last session has been extended for bowling eight overs more in addition to the mandatory 90 overs for the day.

The post Play resumes on fourth day of third India-Windies Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

India are 1-0 up in the four-match Test series with a comprehensive victory in the first match by an innings and 92 runs, followed by a superb fight-back by the hosts in the second Test which saw the rain-interrupted match end in a draw.

Riding on valiant centuries from Ashwin (118) and stumper Wriddhiman Saha (104), India recovered from the early jolts they received on the opening day to post 353 runs in the first innings on the second day. At stumps on Day 2, the West Indies reached 107 for the loss of one wicket.

"In hindsight, later on this could very well be a series-defining knock because we were in some trouble yesterday and there was every chance that we could be skittled out. I thought it needed a bit of application. It was not like making a hundred back home or anywhere in the world," Ashwin told reporters after the second day's play on Wednesday.

"I'm sure about that because it was definitely not a wicket where you could just plonk your front foot and play through the line. It was a hard-fought day yesterday and it was no different today. We just hope we can capitalise on the rear guard action later tomorrow," he said.

Ashwin and Saha shared a mammoth 213-run partnership for the sixth wicket to rescues the visitors. Ashwin scored his fourth Test century while Saha brought up his maiden hundred in the longest format of the game.

"Saha expressed himself this morning, and he played quite a few shots. To me, it was very important that I hung around, because that sort of solidity was very important. We knew we were about 50-60 runs away from any kind of respectability so my game plan was very simple."

"As I walked in yesterday, I walked in today. I wanted to leave the balls and I wanted to play close to the body. Try and bat time, it was not about knocking off the hundred or going and playing shots, it was all about batting time and trying and stringing partnerships," the 29-year-old added, while speaking about their big partnership."

The Chennai-born tweaker further stressed that the pitch was not easy to score on but was honest to confess that he and Saha enjoyed each other's company in the middle.

"When we got together we were in quite a bit of trouble and it was one of those wickets where you are not in any time. There was a good chance that you might be nicked off or you might get a good ball any time. It was very difficult to score."

"So we went thought, bit the bullet quite hard and wanted to just stick in there even if the runs weren't quite coming. Obviously, the results came later on. It was a good partnership and both enjoyed each other's company to be very honest."

"The thing is that they did get some momentum, I believe, from the Jamaica Test, but that's how Test cricket is like. We didn't come over here thinking or expecting to roll them over. They're also a Test team, and in their home conditions, it's going to be hard and we expected it," Ashwin said.

The post My century could well be a series-defining knock: Ashwin appeared first on Social News XYZ.

At stumps, KC Brathwaite at 53 not out in 143 balls and DM Bravo 18 out of 66 balls were at the crease in 47 overs, still trailing India by 247 runs.

India, however, got a breakthrough in the 24th over when off opener LR Johnson was run out for 23 in 75 balls by a quick throw at the non-striking wicket by KL Rahul when Windies score was 59 in 24th over.

India's three pacers -- Mohammed Shami, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma -- and two spinners Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja contained the openers with line and length, but did not succeed in getting early wickets at the end of the day's session.

In the sixth over, Johnson was dropped in the second slip by Jadeja

Shami was also unlucky to get the first wicket when Rahul dropped a touch catch by Johnson in the sixth over when the score was 12 for none.

Earlier, Windies bundled out India for 353-run in 129.4 overs.

Surviving the nervous nineties for too long and after getting stuck at 99 for six overs, Ashwin crossed the 100-mark in style by lofting a Roston Chase ball to six at long off in the 117th over of the innings, taking the score to 323 for 5 wickets.

This is Ashwin's second Test century in this series after 113 in the first Test at Antigua on July 20 and fourth against the Windies.

Three overs later, Saha too hit his maiden Test hundred with two runs of a Chase ball to the cover drive in the 121st over, taking the overall score to 332 for 5.

Incidentally, Saha is the fourth Indian wicket-keeper after Vijay Manjrekar, M.S. Dhoni and Ajay Ratra to hit a Test century in the away from home series.

In the following over (122), Saha nicked the ball from Alzarri Joseph to be caught by stumper Shane Dowrich for 104 in 227 balls with 13 boundaries, which is the highest in this innings.

Ashwin's sixer is the only one in the Indian innings. His marathon innings ended on a high note of 118 runs in 297 balls with six boundaries.

The centurion duo also set a record 213-run partnership for the sixth wicket against the Windies.

With the star middle order batsmen back in the pavilion, the tail-enders did not last long after Jadeja left for 6-run, caught behind by keeper Dowrich of a Cummins' ball, as Bhuveneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma got out for ducks, while Mohammed Sami remained not out with nil score. India lost its last 5 wickets for a paltry 37-run.

For the hosts, keeper Dowrich took four catches, while ML Cummins and debutant Alzarri Jospeh shared three wickets each, followed by ST Gabriel and Chase two each. Skipper Jason Holder and Kraigg Brathwaite did not get any wicket.

With a record double century partnership, Ashwin and Saha pulled India out of deep trouble on the first day defying the Windies attack and taking the score to 339 from 126 for 5 wickets on Tuesday after Ajinkey Rahane left for 35 runs.

Windies began their chase with openers Brathwaite and Johnson surviving the initial bust of Indian pace attack, which was aided by seam and swing.

The post Windies fight back after Ashwin, Saha hit centuries appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Surviving the nervous nineties for too long and after getting stuck at 99 for six overs, Ashwin crossed the 100-mark in style by lofting a Roston Chase ball to six at long off in the 117th over of the innings, taking the score to 323 for 5 wickets.

This is Ashwin's second Test century in this series after 113 in the first Test at Antigua on July 20 and fourth against the Windies.

Three overs later, Saha too hit his maiden Test hundred with two runs of a Chase ball to the cover drive in the 121st over, taking the overall score to 332 for 5.

Incidentally, Saha is the fourth Indian wicket-keeper after Vijay Manjrekar, M.S. Dhoni and Ajay Ratra to hit a Test century in the away from home series.

In the following over (122), Saha nicked the ball from Alzarri Joseph to be caught by stumper Shane Dowrich for 104 in 227 balls with 13 boundaries, which is the highest in this innings.

Ashwin's sixer is the only one in the Indian innings. His marathon innings ended on a high note of 118 runs in 297 balls with six boundaries.

The centurion duo also set a record 213-run partnership for the sixth wicket against the Windies.

With the star middle order batsmen back in the pavilion, the tail-enders did not last long after Ravindra Jadeja left for 6-run, caught behind by keeper Dowrich of a Cummins' ball, as Bhuveneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma got out for ducks, while Mohammed Sami remained not out with nil score. India lost its last 5 wickets for a paltry 37 runs

For the hosts, keeper Dowrich took four catches, while ML Cummins and debutant Alzarri Jospeh shared three wickets each, followed by ST Gabriel and Chase two each. Skipper Jason Holder and Kraigg Braithwaite did not any wicket.

With a record double century partnership by Ashwin and Saha, who pulled India out of deep trouble on the first day by defying the Windies attack and taking the score to 339 from 126 for 5 wickets on Tuesday after Jinked Rahane left for 35 runs.

Windies began their chase with openers Brathwaite and Johnson surviving the initial bust of Indian pace attack, which was aided by seam and swing.

At tea, Windies were 16 for no loss in 9 overs, trailing India by 227 runs. Kumar and Sami had no initial success when tea was called on.

The post Windies skittle India for 353 after Ashwin, Saha hit centuries appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Riding on valiant centuries from all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin (118) and stumper Wriddhiman Saha (104), India recovered from the early jolts they received on the opening day.

The right-handed duo forged together a 213-run stand for the sixth wicket before debutant pacer Alzarri Joseph managed to separate them with the wicket of Saha caught behind by keeper Shane Dowrich.

From there on, West Indies managed to snare the last four wickets within just 14 runs.

The post Windies bundle India out for 353 in third Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Resuming their batting at 234/5 on another sunny day, Ashwin remained unbeaten at 99 from 257 balls with five boundaries and Saha not out on 93 from 208 deliveries with 12 boundaries at the end of the first two-hour session.

The duo is on the verge of making centuries in the post-lunch session and a record sixth wicket unbeaten partnership 190.

Desperate efforts of Windies skipper Jason Holder in shuffling his pacers and spinners could not separate the Indians from batting freely.

Brief Scores: India 316/5 (Ravichandran Ashwin 99, Wriddhiman Saha 93, Alzarri Joseph 2/54, Roston Chase 2/50)

The post Ashwin, Saha take India to 316/5 on second day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Making best out of the second new ball to notch up 46 in nine overs, the unbeaten duo rescued India from collapsing in the first innings and accelerated the run-rate to score 104 in 38 overs during the last session after Windies pacers tamed their top order to 126 for 5 in the first 52 overs.

Sharing the day's honours evenly, Windies dominated the first two sessions while India did in the third and last session, with top scorer Ashwin remaining unbeaten 75 from 190 balls (4 boundaries) and Saha 46 not out from 122 balls (4 boundaries).

All efforts by the Caribbean captain Janson Holder to break the partnership did not succeed despite using six bowlers, including spinner Roston Chase, who bagged two wickets along with Test debutant Alzarri Joseph.

Chase was, however, not brought again into the attack as the pitch was not conducive to his off-spin bowling.

Earlier, India was struggling till tea session with only 130 for 5 wickets on board.

Resuming at 87 for 3 wickets after lunch, Rahane and Rohit Sharma tried to consolidate the first innings by playing cautiously against a combined attack of pace and spin with restricted field placement.

Sharma, who came in place Cheteshwar Pujara, was the first to exit in the third consecutive maiden over and 26th over of the innings during the post-lunch session, as he nicked an off-stump ball by Joseph to give wicket keeper Shane Dowrich a regular catch, his second after getting off-opener Shikhar Dawan for one in the third over.

Though Rahane tried to build the innings with Ashwin, he was bowled by all-rounder Roston Chase with a brilliant full toss that swung into the wicket in the 50th over after he scored a paltry 35 in 133 balls with four fours.

Saha joined Ashwin to limit the damage and take the team out of the crisis that brew in the pre-lunch session when three wickets, including that of Lokesh Rahul (50), Dhawan (1) and skipper Virat Kohli (3) fell by the 20th over.

After the top order left in the first two sessions of the day scoring 126 in 50 overs, Ashwin and Saha defied the combo attack by defending the wicket to build the innings from where Rahane left.

The run rate, however, slumped in the post-lunch session, as the middle order could score only 47 in 29 overs as against 87 in 23 overs during the pre-lunch session.

Earlier in the day, Rahul and Rahane steered the team out of trouble by posting 58-run third wicket partnership in after losing Dhawan and Kohli for a paltry 19 in the first six overs of the game.

Spinner Chase and pacer Joseph picked up their second wickets during the post-lunch with disclipined bowling and maintaining both line and length.

Sharon Gabriel is the other successful bowler who scalped Dhawan in the third over.

The 24-year-old Rahul continued with his brilliant form from the second Test at Kingston in Jamaica where he scored 158 in 303 balls, with 15 boundaries and three sixes.

The Bengaluru lad, however, got caught in the short fine leg by Kraigg Brathwaite in the 20th over to a raising ball of Chase just after scoring his seventh half-century in Tests in 65 balls, with six boundaries.

For the hosts, Joseph bagged his first Test wicket when Darren Bravo caught the Indian captain at first slip in his second over and sixth of the innings.

India are 1-0 in the series after winning the first Test at Antigua.

The post Ashwin, Saha defy Windies, guide India to 234/5 in third Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Resuming at 87 for 3 wickets after lunch, Indian middle order batters Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma tried to consolidate the first innings by playing cautiously against a combined attack of pace and spin with restricted field placement.

Sharma, who came in place Cheteshwar Pujara, was the first to exit in the third consecutive maiden over and 26th over of the innings during the post-lunch session, as he nicked an off-stump ball by Test debutant Alzarri Joseph to give wicket keeper Shane Dowrich a regular catch, his second after getting off-opener Shikhar Dawan for one run in the third over.

Though Rahane tried to build the innings with Ravichandran Ashwin, he was bowled by all-rounder Roston Chase with a brilliant full toss that swung into the wicket in the 50th over after scored a paltry 35 in 133 balls with four fours.

Indian keeper Wriddhaman Saha joined Ashwin to limit the damage and take the team out of the crisis that brew in the pre-lunch session when three wickets, including that of Lokesh Rahul (50), Dhawan (1) and skipper Virat Kohli (3) fell by in the 20th over.

After the top order left in the first two sessions of the day scoring 126 in 50 overs, Ashwin and Shah defied the combo attack by defending the wicket to build the innings from where Rahane left.

The run rate, however, slumped in the post-lunch session, as the middle order could score only 47 in 29 overs as against 87 in 23 overs during the pre-lunch session.

Earlier in the day, Rahul and Rahane steered the team out of trouble by posting 58-run third wicket partnership in after losing Dhawan and Kohli for a paltry 19 in the first six overs of the game.

Spinner Chase and pacer Joseph picked up their second wickets during the post-lunch with disciplined bowling and maintaining both line and length.

Sharon Gabriel is the other successful bowler who scalped Dhawan in the third over.

The 24-year-old Rahul continued with his brilliant form from the second Test at Kingston in Jamaica where he scored 158 in 303 balls, with 15 boundaries and three sixes.

The Bengaluru lad, however, got caught in the short fine leg by Kraigg Brathwaite in the 20th over to a raising ball of Chase just after scoring his seventh half-century in Tests in 65 balls, with six boundaries.

For the hosts, Joseph bagged his first Test wicket when Darren Bravo caught the Indian captain at first slip in his second over and sixth of the innings.

India are 1-0 in the series after winning the first Test at Antigua.

Brief Scores: India 130/5 (Lokesh Rahul 50, Ajinkya Rahane 35 not out, Chase and Joseph 2 wickets each.

The post India struggle in third Test against Windies at tea appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Put to bat first, India made 87 for three wickets in the pre-lunch session on a sunny day, with clouds hovering.

Rahane at 17 and Rohit Sharma at 9 were at the crease when lunch was called after the two-hour session, with 23 overs bowled.

India got off to a poor start losing opener Shikhar Dhawan (1) cheaply while skipper Virat Kohli (3) also perished soon after in the first hour of the day.

Tottering at 19/2, opener Lokesh Rahul (50) showed some resistance with a fine half century as he put on 58 runs for the third wicket with Rahane before all-rounder Roston Chase packed him back to reduce the visitors to 77/3.

Windies pacers Shannon Gabriel, debutant Alzarri Joseph and Chase shared the three wickets each.

The 24-year-old Rahul continued with his brilliant form from the second Test at Kingston in Jamaica where he scored 158 in 303 balls, with 15 boundaries and three sixes.

The Bengaluru lad, however, got caught in the short fine leg by Kraigg Brathwaite in the 20th over to a raising ball of Chase just after scoring his seventh half-century in Tests in 65 balls, with six boundaries.

For the hosts, Joseph bagged his first Test wicket when Darren Bravo caught the Indian captain at first slip in his second over and sixth of the innings.

Earlier, Gabriel packed off opener Dhawan in the third over, caught behind by wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich.

Both the teams have made changes after the draw in the second Test with India retaining Rahul in place of a fit-again Murali Vijay. Sharma was brought in place of Cheteshwar Puja, while all-rounder Ravindra Jadea and pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar were included, replacing leg-spinner Amit Mishra and pacer Umesh Yadav.

For the hosts, opener Leon Johnson and pacer Joseph made it to the playing XI replacing Rajendra Chandrika and leggie Devendra Bishoo.

India are 1-0 in the series after winning the first Test at Antigua.

Brief Scores: India 87/3 (Lokesh Rahul 50, Ajinkya Rahane 17 not out, Shannon Gabriel 1/27, Roston Chase 1/16)

The post Rahul, Rahane steer India to 87/3 at lunch in third Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Ajinkya Rahane at 17 and Rohit Sharma at 9 were at the crease when lunch was called after the first two-hour session when 23 overs were bowled.

India got off to a poor start losing opener Shikhar Dhawan (1) cheaply while skipper Virat Kohli (3) also perished soon after in the first hour of the day.

Tottering at 19/2, opener Lokesh Rahul (50) showed some resistance with a fine half century as he put on 58 runs for the third wicket with Rahane before all-rounder Roston Chase packed him back to reduce the visitors to 77/3.

Windies pacers Shannon Gabriel, debutant Alzarri Joseph and Chase shared the three wickets each.

The post India reach 87/3 at lunch in third Test against Windies appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Both the teams have made changes after the draw in the second Test with India retaining Lokesh Rahul after his magnificent century. A fit-again Murali Vijay will, however, miss the third match while Cheteshwar Pujara has also been benched.

Rohit Sharma has been brought in as Pujara's replacement while all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar were included in place of leg-spinner Amit Mishra and pacer Umesh Yadav.

For the hosts, opener Leon Johnson and pacer Alzarri Joseph made it to the playing XI replacing Rajendra Chandrika and leggie Devendra Bishoo.

India are 1-0 in the series after winning the first Test at Antigua.

Team:
India: Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar

West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite, Leon Johnson, Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Jermaine Blackwood, Roston Chase, Shane Dowrich (wk), Jason Holder (Captain), Miguel Cummins, Alzarri Joseph, Shannon Gabriel

The post Windies elect to field against India in third Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

After a comprehensive victory in the first Test by an innings and 92 runs, India looked favourites to win the second one as well, but an outstanding batting display on the final day by Roston Chase (137 off 269 balls) helped the home side manage a draw and stay alive in the four-match series.

India failed to pick up six wickets on the final day of the second Test which resulted in a draw. But despite the draw in the second Test, the visitors look a better side on paper to grab the series in the third match at the Darren Sammy Stadium here.

"It turned out to be more challenging on day five. We know that we had the upper hand throughout. If we had play on day four we would have probably wrapped up things. The momentum was with us and it is a massive factor in cricket, in all formats, especially in Test cricket and that can only be attained by playing consistent cricket," Kohli said.

"We did that over a period of three days, we got the momentum, we were dominating, but you don't have control over the weather and conditions."

"On day five, it was a very good batting effort by West Indies. They applied themselves very well. But not taking anything away from our bowlers, they tried their best. Very rarely do you see the ball not reversing, not swinging conventionally and the pitch slowing down."

"When these three things come together, and the batsmen are applying themselves, it's very difficult to take wickets. It was a really good test for the bowlers. These situations will come again. We have taken positives and learning from day five and will apply those going forward in these Tests," he added.

With Lokesh Rahul, skipper Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane being in fine touch and striking big runs, there is not much to worry about in batting, and the skipper said that he might stick to Rahul as the opener with Shikhar Dhawan.

"The good thing is all three openers are playing well. The bad thing is that you can only choose two between three. That is a call we need to take as management. We'll sit down today and do that. Getting injured when playing well is not in your hand," Kohli said.

"That's why they say injuries can really upset people and bring them down. The good thing is Vijay has been in a good headspace. He's back to the nets and back to fielding and we will take a call on that," the Delhi-born said.

"Injuries are not in anyone's hands. Even in the IPL, I remember a game where Mandeep Singh was fit and set to play. While I was at the toss he split his webbing, KL got a chance and he hasn't looked back since. We conveyed to Mandeep that unfortunately it was an injury and nothing can be done about that. We need to look at the balance of the side," the 27-year-old said.

The post India’s bowlers have learnt lesson from drawn second Test: Kohli appeared first on Social News XYZ.

After a comprehensive victory in the first Test by an innings and 92 runs, India looked favourites to win the second one as well, but an outstanding batting display on the final day by Roston Chase (137 off 269 balls) helped the home side manage a draw and stay alive in the four-match series.

But despite the draw in the second Test, the visitors look a better side on paper to grab the series in the third match at the Darren Sammy Stadium here.

India have previously played a Test in this ground in 2006 and the game ended in a draw.

With the batting line-up faring well and posting big totals on both the matches, India's head coach Anil Kumble will have to sort few things in the bowling department and come up with answers why they could not pick six wickets on the final day of second Test.

Lokesh Rahul, skipper Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane have been in fine touch and striking big runs, there is not much to worry in batting.

With pace trio Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami and Umesh Yadav contributing in both the matches, except the final day of the second Test, it is most likely that the combination will not be changed.

However a change can be expected in the spin department with left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja getting a chance in place of leg-spinner Amit Mishra. Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has already cemented his spot with a match-winning show in the first Test.

The hosts will aim to make a mark with the bat after failing to do so in the first two Tests.

Senior batsmen Marlon Samuels and Darren Bravo will have to take the responsibility and score big o entyertain any hopes of staying alive in the series. Besides the experienced duo, the young batsmen in the side will have to step up and prove a point.

They have included 22-year-old Shai Hope, the opening batsman from Barbados, in their squad for the third Test.

Hope replaced opener Rajendra Chandrika, who scored 16, 31, 5 and 1 in the first two Tests.

In the bowling department, the major headache for the hosts will be their weakened pace bowling department after Jerome Taylor retired from Tests and Kemar Roach not considered for selection.

In their absence, skipper Jason Holder will have to take the responsibility to lead the attack again along with Carlos Brathwaite, Shannon Gabriel and Miguel Cummins while leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo is the lone specialist spinner in the team.

The squads:

India: Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), R Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Ravindra Jadeja, Stuart Binny, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma.

West Indies: Jason Holder (capttain), Kraigg Brathwaite (vice-captain), Devendra Bishoo, Jermaine Blackwood, Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Leon Johnson, Alzarri Joseph, Marlon Samuels.

The post India look to bag series against West Indies in third Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

The right-handed Chandrika has scored 53 runs from his four innings in the current series, to extend his misery at the highest level, where he has only managed 140 runs in five Tests at an average of 14, reports CMC.

Chandrika's place has been taken by Shai Hope who though promising, has also struggled at international level, with only 171 runs in six Tests at an average of 15.

However, Hope pressed his case to selectors recently when he carved out an unbeaten 118 for the West Indies Cricket Board President's XI in a tour game against the Indians at Warner Park.

The 22-year-old is the only change to the squad which will seek to square the series when the third Test bowls off at the Darren Sammy National Stadium.

They fell behind 0-1 in the four-Test series when they slumped to an innings and 92-run defeat in the opening Test at the Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium.

However, they rebounded well in the second Test here to pull off a draw, batting the entire final day to amass 388 for six, when they seemed poised to slide to another innings defeat.

The fourth Test is scheduled for Queen's Park Oval in Trinidad from August 18-22.

The squad: Jason Holder (captain), Kraigg Brathwaite (vice-captain), Devendra Bishoo, Jermaine Blackwood, Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Leon Johnson, Alzarri Joseph, Marlon Samuels.

The post West Indies recall Hope, axe Chandrika for third Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Down and out for almost the entire four days, the hosts rode on all-rounder Roston Chase's resilient unbeaten 137 off 269 balls along with his five-for in the first innings to secure an improbable draw on Wednesday.

Staring at a defeat when play resumed on 48/4, the home side bounced back with valuable contributions from Chase, Jermaine Blackwood (62), Shane Dowrich (74) and skipper Jason Holder (64 not out) to score 388/6 in 194 overs, denying the visitors a 2-0 lead in the series.

Despite the Indian bowlers sticking to a tight line and length on the final day, they failed to break the shackles. Kumble credited the Caribbean team's efforts but rued the fact that four sessions were lost due to rain.

"Obviously, we wanted to win this Test match. Yesterday, I thought we were in a very good position and credit to the West Indies batsmen, the way they batted," Kumble said in the post-match press conference.

"Yesterday, the time lost was very crucial for us, because we were in great momentum and the conditions were such that it could have been different if we had probably bowled yesterday. There was loss of play; more than 100 overs in this Test match."

"But all those factors mattered. In the end, credit to the West Indian batsmen, how they batted today and their application as well," he added.

Asked if India could have declared early keeping in mind the rain threat, Kumble said key decisions should not be made according to weather forecasts.

"You can't really look at the forecast and take decisions. If you looked at the forecast on day 3, it was supposed to rain the whole day, and even day 4 it was supposed to rain. So you can't really look at the forecast and decide what you need to do. Yes, you strategise slightly differently.

"It's all nice to now sit and say when we should have declared and what if, but I thought we played really good cricket, we were dominant right throughout and today, you know the change in momentum happened and credit to the West Indian batsmen."

"You obviously feel from the position we were in that we should have probably wrapped up the Test match, but having said that this is certainly something that happens in a Test match. You have times when the opposition puts up a brave challenge and that's exactly what happened," he added.

Despite managing to get rid of the top order, India failed to pack the tail quickly, which Kumble said will be discussed in the team meetings.

"There's nothing as tail or top order. You try and put together a plan for every batsman. You try and execute that. What we have done really well is knock the top off really quickly."

"That is certainly something we will discuss, as to how we get the last three or four. At the end of it, it's about picking 20 wickets. I'm very happy with the effort put in by our bowlers," the former India skipper added.

The post Kumble hails Windies’ fighting spirit in saving second Test appeared first on Social News XYZ.

India, with the first innings lead of 304 runs, had the hosts on the mat in the rain-marred first session of play as they picked up four wickets in just 15.5 overs.

The hosts still need 256 runs to make India bat in the second innings and avoid a second consecutive Test defeat.

After the start of the match was delayed by an hour and 15 minutes, India removed Rajendra Chandrika (1), who had pacer Ishant Sharma ball kiss his elbow as he tried to leave the ball before it hit the stumps.

Before rain interrupted the play again, India gave away only six runs as rain intervened the visitors' progress.

After a 30-minute rain-enforced break, India were again right on the money, even though Kraigg Braithwaite (23) and Darren Bravo (20) showed some resistance.

Right-hander Braightwaite skied leg-spinner Amit Mishra and it was followed by a running catch from Lokesh Rahul as the West Indies lost their second wicket for 41 runs.

Afterwards, right-arm medium pacer Mohammed Shami operated with a probing line and bagged two quick wickets. While veteran right-hander Marlon Samuels was clean bowled after missing the line, left-hander Bravo succumbed to a rising ball, ending up nudging a catch to Rahul at third slip as the West Indies plunged to 48/4.

Jermaine Blackwood was batting on 3 as the ball that dismissed Bravo was the final one before lunch was called.

Brief scores: West Indies 196 and 48/4 (Kraigg Braithwaite 23; Mohammed Shami 2/25) vs India: 500/9d.

The post India reduce West Indies to 48/4 in second innings appeared first on Social News XYZ.

The game had begun after a delay of an hour and 15 minutes due to rain but only three overs of play was possible before the rain returned again.

India declared at 500 for nine wickets in their first innings, while the West Indies reached 6/1 in their second innings after their first innings total of 196.

The post India vs Windies: Rain interrupts play on 4th day appeared first on Social News XYZ.