A look at eight Indian performances that stood out more than the others in the all-format series sweep in the Caribbean
Aishwarya Kumar in Kingston03-Sep-20191. Navdeep Saini’s 3 for 17, 1st T20I, LauderhillSaini is an easy pick on this list. In his first over in international cricket, he took out Nicholas Pooran with a short ball that took the top edge, and next ball he dismissed Shimron Hetmyer as the batsman played on. A neat spell was rounded off with the lbw of Kieron Pollard. The 26-year-old tearaway ended with 3 for 17, helping stop West Indies at 95 for 9 and set up a four-wicket win.2. Deepak Chahar’s 3 for 4, 3rd T20I, ProvidenceIt was like geometry, a medium-pace bowler forming perfect arcs with the ball in the air. First to Evin Lewis, then to Hetmyer, Chahar went outside off and then get the ball to shape in sharply, stay low, and hit the pad. On both occasions, it was plumb. Wickets two and three for Chahar, after he had dismissed Sunil Narine in the second over of the innings. He ended the match with 3-1-4-3 – Man-of-the-Match stuff, in a seven-wicket win.3. Virat Kohli’s 120 off 125 balls, 2nd ODI, Port of SpainKohli’s 42nd ODI century, celebrated with a big smile and, in case you didn’t know who he was, a lot of pointing to his name on the back of his jersey. It had sweet flicks, a few cheeky steers – and edges too – and some incredible drives. It was also the innings that took Kohli past Sourav Ganguly’s ODI run-tally, leaving him only behind Sachin Tendulkar’s mark among Indians. Not to forget his partnership with young Shreyas Iyer. The pair added 125 for the fourth wicket, with Iyer scoring a 68-ball 71 to take India to a respectable 279. Bhuvneshar Kumar’s four-for then finished West Indies off for 210.4. Shreyas Iyer’s 65 off 41 balls, 3rd ODI, Port-of-SpainKohli confessed to being reminded of his own early years when he watched Iyer bat in the third and final ODI of the series. His 41-ball 65 followed an important half-century in the second ODI, and in both games, he added century stands with Kohli. With India trying to figure out the upper-middle order in ODIs, Iyer could become a “strong contender and a regular feature,” Kohli said.Ajinkya Rahane drives down the ground•Getty Images5. Ajinkya Rahane, 102, 1st Test, AntiguaAugust 3, 2017 to August 25, 2019 – that’s how long it took Ajinkya Rahane to get from nine Test centuries to ten. The hundred in Antigua, in the second dig, was an excellent one, but it wasn’t his only contribution to India’s win. In the first innings, Rahane came out to bat with India at 25 for 3 and his patient 81 gave them solidity before a half-century from Ravindra Jadeja pushed them to 297. In the second innings, he came in at 187 for 4, with India looking to turn their 75-run lead into an insurmountable target. Rahane took 235 balls to get to the century, and finished on 102 – all the work, all the processes had finally paid off.6. Jasprit Bumrah, 5 for 7, 1st Test, AntiguaHe brought a new weapon out in the first Test, regardless of whether he was bowling to a right-hander or a left-hander. Bumrah forced the batsmen to commit to play the angle against his fast deliveries that moved appreciably. Both John Campbell and Darren Bravo, left-hand batsmen, misjudged the movement and had their stumps scattered. This, after a wide outswinger had Brathwaite edging uncertainly behind the stumps. Bumrah then went on to dismiss Shai Hope and Jason Holder with full balls around off, both swinging away from the right-hand batsmen just enough on to hit the off stump. By the time he was done with his spell, West Indies were 37 for 7 in a chase of 419 and eventually stuttered to a 318-run defeat.7. Hanuma Vihari, 111, 2nd Test, JamaicaVihari’s innings at Sabina Park was a mature one, especially for someone who had played only five Tests before this. As he had done previously in the series, he walked into a tricky situation. India were 164 for 4, having been put in to bat, and needed someone to build an innings and shepherd the lower order. That’s exactly what Vihari did, even putting up a century partnership with Ishant Sharma, who scored his first half-century in Test cricket. Thanks to Vihari and Ishant’s efforts, India, who would have been happy with 350 at one point, ended with 416.8. Jasprit Bumrah, 6 for 27, including a hat-trick 2nd Test, JamaicaA length ball swinging away from the middle stump. Darren Bravo edges it to second slip. Caught.Another length ball swings in from outside off. Shamarh Brooks looks to go across the line and is trapped in front of middle stump. Lbw.A full inswinger that raps Roston Chase above the toe, in front of middle stump. Bumrah doesn’t even appeal. Kohli yells, “There was no bat on that”. Review. Lbw. Hat-trick. Bumrah stares in disbelief, his hands on his mouth. He becomes only the third Indian bowler, after Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan, to claim a Test hat-trick.It was the ninth over of West Indies’ first innings after Vihari and Ishant had played their parts so well. Bumrah’s was the kind of effort that has Kohli screaming “what a bowler, man” from behind the stumps. What a bowler, indeed! Just 12 Test matches, a five-for in every country he has played in, a Test hat-trick, a series haul of 13 in four innings.
