Revision as of 12:13, 18 March 2015

India vs. West Indies: in the World Cup(1979-2011) Graphic courtesy: The Times of India

2013-14: Indian victories

INDIA'S LAST 5 WINS OVER WI

RUCHIR MISHRA The Times of India Mar 04 2015

A PERFECT GAME

DHARAMSALA (OCT 17, 2014)

India 330-6 in 50 overs (Virat Kohli 127, Suresh Raina 71, Ajinkya Rahane 68) beat West Indies 271 in 48.1 overs (Marlon Samuels 112; Bhuvneshwar 2-25, Axar 2-26) by 59 runs.SUMMARY: Led by a superb top-order show, India posted a massive total on the board, maintaining a good run rate throughout and had partnerships right till the end. Then, the new ball bowlers struck early blows and that proved decisive despite a fightback by Samuels and Russell.LESSONS: Early strikes by pacers let the spinners dictate terms during the middle overs.

ESCAPE TO VICTORY

DELHI (OCT 11, 2014)

India 263-7 in 50 overs (Kohli 62, Raina 62, Dhoni 51*; Jerome Taylor 3-54) beat West Indies 215 in 46.3 overs (Dwayne Smith 97, Kieron Pollard 40; Md Shami 4-36, Ravindra Jadeja 3-44) by 48 runs.SUMMARY: It was a case of the opposition gifting the game rather than India winning it. West Indies were under control for most of the match while chasing 264 till they goofed up during the Powerplay. They lost two set batsmen when they needed just a run a ball. Then, Shami and Jadeja ran through the middle and lower order.LESSONS: One of the top-order batsmen should anchor the innings to help India post a big total.

SHIKHAR SHINES

KANPUR (NOV 27, 2013)

West Indies 263-5 in 50 overs (Samuels 71, Kieran Powell 70, Darren Bravo 51; R Ashwin 2-45) lost to India 266-5 in 46.1 overs (Shikhar Dhawan 119, Yuvraj Singh 55).SUMMARY: A perfect game for India where they did most of the things right. On a good batting surface, they restricted the opposition to a manageable score. The pacers didn't take early wickets but didn't go for runs and the spinners suffocated the middle order. Despite losing two early wickets, India chased down the target with ease as Dhawan anchored the innings with a brilliant ton.LESSONS: Instead of leaving it for others, a set batsman should finish the job.

SPINNERS TO THE FORE

KOCHI (NOV 21, 2013)

West Indies 211 in 48.5 overs (Darren Bravo 59; Jadeja 3-37, Raina 3-34) lost to India 2124 in 35.2 overs (Kohli 86, Rohit Sharma 72) by six wickets.SUMMARY: Indian spinners pulled it back after some wayward spells from fast bowlers. West Indies struggled to get going against the slower bowlers and fell way short of a competitive total. With a sensible second-wicket stand, India chased the down the target with ease.LESSON: The spinners may also have an off day and in that case, India can give away too many runs as the pacers could be profligate.

KOHLI SPECIAL

PORT OF SPAIN (JULY 5, 2013)

India 311-7 in 50 overs (Virat Kohli 102, Shikhar Dhawan 69; Rohit Sharma 46; Tino Best 2-51) beat West Indies (Revised target: 274 in 39 overs) 171 in 34 overs (Jonathan Charles 45; Bhuvneshwar 3-29, Umesh Yadav 3-32) by 102 runs (DL method).SUMMARY: Indian top order did a decent job after being put in bowler friendly conditions and despite the middle-order collapse, India managed to cross the 300-run mark, thanks largely to Kohli's responsible hundred. Indian pacers utilised the conditions better than their West Indian counterparts and the hosts were never in game while chasing.

LESSONS: Indian batsmen should be careful during the batting powerplay.

They almost frittered away a great start.