Captain Shreyas Iyer stood up and dominated the chase to set up an easy win for India, who drew first blood in the series. Shreyas Iyer was at his stupendous best under pressure in the chase. But before that, useful half-centuries from Sherfane Rutherford and captain Shai Hope alongside a cameo from Akeal Hosein helped West Indies post 171 in 19.1 overs. For India, debutant Naman Dhir picked up 3 wickets while Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel picked up 2 wickets apiece.
Chasing 172 for the win, India rode on a maiden T20I century from captain Shreyas Iyer after the two openers Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson departed early. Shreyas, alongside Ishan Kishan, who also played his part with his unbeaten 37 off 27 balls. The duo put on an unbeaten 137 runs off 68 balls to flatten West Indies totally. Shreyas’ maiden ton was the highlight of the evening as the hosts take a 1-0 lead in the 5-match series.
Sherfane Rutherford & Shai Hope’s half-centuries propel West Indies to a fighting 171 in 19.1 overs
Put into bat first by India, captain and keeper-batter Shai Hope and debutant Kamil Pooran came out to open the batting for West Indies while Arshdeep Singh had the new ball in hand for India. West Indies got off to a rolicking start courtesy of their captain Hope while Pooran played second fiddle to his senior partner. The duo put on 38 runs in 5 overs before Pooran fell for 12 off 11 balls, with 2 fours to his name, to Arshdeep Singh as the batter chopped it back into the stumps.
Shimron Hetmyer came out to bat next and got off the mark with a boundary. Just 6 runs were added by Hope and Hetmyer before Hetmyer fell for 5 off 2 balls, with one four to his name, after being run out by captain Shreyas Iyer. Rovman Powell came out to bat next. The score remained at 44 when Powell was dismissed for a golden duck to Axar Patel. Sherfane Rutherford came out to bat next as the power play score was 44/3 in 6 overs.
Hope and Rutherford got together to forge a partnership and counterattack in the middle phase of the game. Hope was the dominant partner while Rutherford complemented him really well. The duo batted deep and added a quickfire 63-run crucial stand for the 4th wicket before Hope, after reaching the fifty, fell for a well-made 52 off 37 balls with six fours and two sixes to his name to Naman Dhir. Roston Chase came out to bat next.
Chase came and hit a boundary but could add just 7 runs alongside Rutherford before Chase fell for 5 off 3 balls with one four to his name, LBW plumb in front to Kuldeep Yadav. Romario Shepherd came out to bat next. Shepherd came and hit a maximum off Dhir but could add only 7 runs with Rutherford before Shepherd fell for 7 off 5 balls with one six to his name to Naman. Matthew Forde came out to bat next.
Just 3 runs were added to the score before Forde fell for 2 off 4 balls to Kuldeep as Ishan Kishan took a stunner in the deep one-handed. Shamar Springer came out to bat next. Springer hit a maximum as he added 11 runs for the 8th wicket alongside Rutherford before Springer fell for 9 off 7 balls with one six to his name to Naman yet again. Akeal Hosein came out to bat next as the team’s score was 135/8 in 15.5 overs.
Rutherford and Hosein then led West Indies’ fightback as the visitors showed a lot of fight out there. We were in the end overs, and Hosein also hit lusty blows while Rutherford completed his half-century. The duo for the 9th wicket counter-attacked and added 36 runs for the 9th wicket to propel West Indies forward before Rutherford fell for a well-made 56 off 34 balls with 6 fours and 3 sixes to his name to Mayank Yadav. Shamar Joseph came out to bat next.
The score remained at 171 when, in the first ball of the final over, Hosein was the last man out for 15 off 9 balls with one four and one six to his name to Axar Patel. Shamar Joseph remained unbeaten on 0 off 1 ball as West Indies were bowled out for 171 in 19.1 overs. 8 extras were given by the fielding side.
India bowled decently in the first innings, and leading the way was debutant Naman Dhir, who finished with 3/31 in 4 overs. Kuldeep Yadav finished with 2/33 in 4 overs. Axar Patel finished with 2/26 in 3.1 overs. Arshdeep Singh finished with figures of 1/34 in 4 overs. Mayank Yadav finished with 1/40 in 4 overs. Just 5 bowlers were used by India, who now need 172 runs to win off 20 to take a 1-0 lead in the 5-match T20I series.
Shreyas Iyer’s dominating ton blows away West Indies in 14.4 overs
Chasing a challenging target of 172 for the win, keeper batter Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma came out to open the batting for India while Matthew Forde took the new ball for the West Indies. India came out all guns blazing as we expected, as Abhishek was on the go straightaway while Samson showed his class till he was there in the middle. The opening duo added 29 runs in 2.3 overs before Abhishek fell for 21 off 10 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name to Roston Chase.
Ishan Kishan came out to bat next. Ishan and Sanju could add another 6 runs to the tally before Sanju fell for 11 off 9 balls with one four to his name to Akeal Hosein. Captain Shreyas Iyer came out to bat next. India were in a spot of bother at 35/2 in the 4th over, but there was no looking back for India as this was the Shreyas Iyer show. Ishan complemented him well, but Iyer was like a rampaging river. The duo took India’s score to 62/2 in 6 overs, and the platform was laid for the middle phase.
But Shreyas and Ishan were in no mood to give their wickets away, and they applied themselves and took the attack to the opposition. Shreyas was the dominant partner while Ishan played second fiddle as the Indian captain dazzled under the lights at the Ekana Cricket Stadium. The duo took India to 102/2 in 10 overs, and the chase was a mere formality at this stage.
Shreyas reached his fifty and rode his luck as he was almost dismissed but the ball, while being taken, touched the ground, and so NOT OUT was given. But Iyer just did not look back and tore apart the West Indies bowling, who were listless to say the least. The duo just went on and on, and the equation looked a mere formality now. The duo put on an unbeaten 137 runs off just 68 balls to seal the fate of the match literally. In the end, Iyer got to his ton and took India over the line in 14.4 overs.
Iyer was unbeaten on 102 off 43 balls with 10 fours and 6 sixes to his name while Ishan remained unbeaten on 37 off 27 balls with 5 fours to his name. India reached 172/2 in 14.4 overs with one extra given by the West Indies. It was a hard toil for the West Indies bowlers out there. Akeal Hosein finished with 1/37 in 4 overs. Roston Chase finished with 1/37 in 3.4 overs. Matthew Forde gave away 39 runs in 2 overs. Shamar Joseph finished with 0/23 in 2 overs. Romario Shepherd finished with 0/24 in 2 overs. Shamar Springer finished with 0/12 in 1 over.
So, India thrash West Indies by 8 wickets with 32 balls left. Captain Shreyas Iyer was awarded the Player of the Match.
What Lies Ahead
So, India have drawn first blood in this 5-match T20I series and will look to go 2-0 up when the action shifts to the JSCA International Cricket Stadium in Ranchi on Friday, 9th October, 2026. West Indies would like to take the positives and fight back in the next T20I. An interesting series awaits us now.
Also Read: IND VS WI: Sherfane Rutherford’s Stupendous Knock Gives West Indies A Fighting Score.