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India faced a significant setback as they experienced defeat in a five-match T20I series against West Indies. Despite their commendable efforts to level the series 2-2 after initially trailing 0-2, Hardik Pandya‘s team couldn’t secure a victory in the final game on August 13.
The hosts clinched the series with an impressive eight-wicket win led by performances from Brandon King and Romario Shepherd. Reflecting on the loss, India’s T20I captain acknowledged that while the desired results weren’t achieved, these fixtures were pivotal for the learning experience. He emphasized that focusing on the lessons gained from these matches holds greater significance than the final outcome.
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Pandya affirms that occasional losses can be beneficial for Team development
This defeat marked Hardik’s first series loss as captain, a development that many experts hadn’t anticipated considering India’s comfortable wins in the Test and ODI series. In the post-match presentation, Pandya expressed his disappointment at not being able to contribute with the bat in a crucial situation.
“We have enough time to figure out what is supposed to be done in T20s. Sometimes losing is good because it teaches you a lot of things. It does not cover up the messes which you do but I think, on the positive side, there is a lot of learning which we as a group have learned, and special mention to all the boys,” Hardik was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
“To be very honest, they committed themselves, when we were two-down [on Sunday] they kind of took the challenge on themselves and showed character, throughout the series as well. Yeah, it looked like a very one-sided game today but at the same time, they kept the smile, they kept coming, they kept trying, winning and losing is a part of the process. We just have to focus on learning as well,” the 29-year-old concluded.
Synopsis of the series decider
In the final game of the series, Indian captain Hardik won the toss and chose to bat first, despite India’s recent success while chasing in the previous two fixtures. However, this decision backfired as openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill fell early. Nevertheless, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma stabilized the innings with a 49-run partnership before Varma departed for 27.
Efforts from Sanju Samson (13) and Hardik (14) couldn’t significantly boost the total, but Yadav’s impressive 61 off 45 balls added crucial runs. With contributions from the lower order, India managed to post 165/9, a competitive score given the conditions.
India aimed to take early wickets to stay in the game, and the dismissal of Kyle Mayers for 10 provided a boost. Nonetheless, West Indies surprised by promoting Nicholas Pooran to number 3. Pooran, along with King, crafted a 107-run partnership for the second wicket, guiding West Indies towards victory.
Although Pooran was out for 47, King remained unbeaten on a career-best 85, supported by Shai Hope‘s 22 not out. This performance secured West Indies an 8-wicket win, marking their second consecutive T20I series triumph following their victory over South Africa.
