India establishes domination over West Indies in the two-match Test series: Player Ratings for the Visitors
The Indian cricket team regained some of their lost confidence in the purest format of the game by hammering the West Indies cricket team. India lost the WTC final against Australia last month but managed to defeat the Caribbeans on their home pitch in the two-match Test series by 1-0.
The first Test match played at Windsor Park in Roseau, Dominica witnessed a complete domination by the visitors as they hammered the hosts by an innings and 141 runs. Yashasvi Jaiswal emerged as the hero for his team by smacking a century on his Test debut and took home the Player of the Match award.
In the second Test, West Indies gave a relatively better performance but India was still leading by a good margin. However, the hosts successfully avoided a whitewash as rain interrupted the play on day four and the match was declared a draw.
Let us check out the report card of the Indian players:
Top Order
Yashasvi Jaiswal (10/10): The opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal emerged as the hero for the Indian team cricket team as they defeated West Indies by 1-0. He ended up as the top run-scorer with 266 runs in three innings at an average of over 88 and a strike rate of over 54.
His best performance came during the second innings of the first match as he smashed 171 runs off 387 balls to steer India to a massive score of 421 runs and get off to a dream start in his international Test career.
Rohit Sharma (9/10): Along with Yashasvi Jaiswal, the other opening batter Rohit Sharma also blasted the West Indies bowlers all over the park. He is in second place in the run-scoring charts with 240 runs in three innings at an average of 80. Sharma also hit a century during India’s only batting innings in the first Test.
Meanwhile, he recorded 80 and 57 runs respectively across two innings of the second Test. The veteran player was also impressive as a leader on the 22-yard pitch.
Shubman Gill (2/10): It was a golden opportunity for Shubman Gill to score some runs and ask for a permanent place in India’s Test XI. However, the batter failed to make the desired impact while playing at number three.
Gill scored only six runs in the first Test match as he lost his wicket to Jomel Warrican. The second Test was no better as his scores read 10 and 29* respectively.
Middle Order
Virat Kohli (10/10):. 2023 has been a golden year for the former Indian skipper Virat Kohli and he continued his assaults against West Indies as well. The 34-year-old started the two-match Test series with an impressive knock of 76 runs off 182 runs. Meanwhile, it was the first innings of the second Test that witnessed vintage Kohli.
The Royal Challengers Bangalore batter looked in his element as he hammered 121 runs off 206 balls. His knock propelled India to a score of 438 runs and take a good lead in the match. Virat ended up as the third-highest run-getter after Rohit and Jaiswal.
Ajinkya Rahane (1/10): It was a series to forget for the middle-order batter Ajinkya Rahane as he could score even 11 runs across two matches. In the first Test, Rahane was dismissed at a score of 3 runs by Kemar Roach while the first innings of the second Test saw him lose his wicket to Shannon Gabriel at a score of 8 runs.
Ishan Kishan (5/10): Making his debut for India in the longest format of the game, Ishan Kishan was decent. In the first Test, he got an opportunity to bat at number seven. The batter had scored only one run and played 20 balls when the captain declared the innings.
In the first innings of the second Test, he lost to Jason Holder while playing at 25 runs. Meanwhile, his best performance came in the second innings with a knock of 52 runs off 34 balls that marked his first half-century in the Test format.
All-rounders
The spin twins worked their magic in the Caribbean islands
Ravindra Jadeja (8/10): Ravindra Jadeja dished out an all-round performance during the two-match Test series against West Indies. He picked up seven wickets in two matches after bowling for 65 overs at an average of under 16. With the bat, the spinner scored 98 runs in two matches at an average of 98.00.
Ravichandran Ashwin (9/10): Ravi Ashwin was the star player for the Indian cricket team against West Indies as he ended up as the top-highest wicket-taker. Ashwin picked up a whopping 15 wickets at an average of 15 and an economy rate of 2.50 in two Test matches. He contributed with the bat as well by scoring 56 runs in one innings.
Bowlers
Jaydev Unadkat (1/10): It was a series to forget for Jaydev Unadkat against West Indies as he failed to pick even a single wicket. He formed a part of the playing XI in both games but could not work his charm even once. However, the only good part about the seamer was that he did not concede a lot of runs and kept a check on the economy rate.
Mohammed Siraj (7/10): It was a good journey for Mohammed Siraj in the two-match Test series against West Indies as he was the third-highest wicket-taker with seven wickets from two matches. Siraj also won his first Player of the Match award in the purest format of the game during the second Test.
The RCB bowler picked up a whopping five wickets in West Indies’ first batting innings in the second Test at an economy rate of 2.5. He did not get to bowl much in the final innings as rain interrupted play.
Shardul Thakur (2/10): Shardul Thakur formed a part of the playing XI for the first Test but he could not churn out desired performance. The seamer picked only one wicket while bowling at an average of 15 in the first test and was ruled out of the second test due to a groin injury. Mukesh Sharma (4/10): Mukesh Sharma replaced Shardul Thakur in the second Test match and performed slightly better. He picked two wickets in the form of Kirk McKenzie and Alick Athanaze at an economy rate of 2.7.