Bishnoi shines on debut as India take 1-0 series lead

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After winning the toss in the 1st T20I in Kolkata, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma decided to bowl first. Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were back in the XI and Ravi Bishnoi was given his debut cap.

Although West Indies lost the ODI series, they came in with great T20I form after their series win against England. The positive for West Indies was the return of their captain Keiron Pollard who had missed the last two ODIs due to a knee injury.

The decision to bowl first paid rich dividends as the Indian pacers found help from the conditions and got the ball swinging from the start. The first wicket for India came in the form of Brandon King (5) who fell prey to an out-swinging delivery of Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the first over. But Kyle Mayers and Nicholas Pooran batted sensibly and took West Indies to 44 in the Powerplay.

Mayers had started to look dangerous but Yuzvendra Chahal broke through as the opener departed for 31. Debutant Bishnoi had a dream start to his career as he picked up wickets of Roston Chase and Rovman Powell in one over and put West Indies on backfoot. Nicholas Pooran, on the other side, kept finding the boundaries while also anchoring the innings.

Along with the returning Pollard, both the batters took the attack to the Indian bowlers in the death. Pooran’s brilliant 61 off 43 balls and Pollard’s 19-ball 24 provided the late charge and helped West Indies finish 157/7 in 20 overs.

Chasing the 158, skipper Rohit Sharma stamped his authority inside the Powerplay as Ishan Kishan struggled to find his touch. He didn't miss any opportunities to score and in typical style, dispatched anything short to the boundary ropes.

Desperate to break the opening stand, Pollard threw the ball to Roston Chase and the move paid off. In his second over, he dismissed Rohit who holed out at deep mid-wicket. His impactful innings of 40 runs in 19 deliveries had set the tone for an easy run chase.

Ishan Kishan and Virat Kohli carried the momentum forward but Chase once again broke the stand, dismissing the set batter Kishan for 35. India lost two more wickets in the next three overs with Virat and Rishabh Pant making the long walk back.

The three quick wickets put India on the backfoot momentarily but Suryakumar Yadav raced off the blocks and batter through. He remained unbeaten on 34 off 18 deliveries, with Venkatesh Iyer keeping him company till the end with a 13-ball 24*. Iyer finished the match off in style with a six and took India to victory with 7 balls and 6 wickets to spare.