West Indies defeated India by 8 wickets in the second T20I at Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.
Riding on opener Lendl Simmons’ unbeaten 67, the Carribean chased down the target of 171 runs with nine balls to spare to level the three-match series 1-1.
Earlier, a superb knock of 54 off 30 balls from Shivam Dube, who was promoted to number three, had taken India to a fighting 170 for 7 in 20 overs.
Lendl Simmons' half-century helped West Indies level T20I series against India #INDvWI pic.twitter.com/XRygCf3UoM
— CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) December 9, 2019
Speaking at the end of the game, Indian skipper Virat Kohli admitted that batting first had become a problem for his side. He was also critical of his team’s finish with the bat as well as poor fielding. India dropped several catches once again, and Kohli was not impressed with the effort at all.
“Could say that (on whether batting first is a problem). Numbers say a lot of things and a lot of things that aren’t there as well. You expect to get 40-45 in the last four overs, not 30. Shivam’s knock propelled us. If you field like that, no total is good enough. With the ball, we were good, the first four overs. But if you drop chances, it’s going to cost you.
“Fielding is something… we need to be more brave. We shouldn’t be afraid of dropping catches,” Kohli added.
While both the teams admitted that dew wasn’t a factor while fielding, Kohli did hint at the possibility of the floodlights playing a role. The Indian skipper may have taken an excellent diving catch at long-on, but at the same position in the first innings, Kieron Pollard had to shield himself when Shivam Dube’s miscue got lost in the Windies skipper’s line of vision.
The low lights were also an issue for the Indian fielders in Hyderabad, but Kohli insisted on the need for better preparation going ahead.
The three-match series has now moved to Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, where the decisive final T20I will be played on Wednesday, December 11.
