Record opening stand between Jaiswal and Rohit steer India to a big lead against West Indies
Playing at Windsor Park in Roseau against West Indies, the Indian cricket team has become the favorite to win within two days owing to exceptional performance by the batters and bowlers.
The first day of the first Test at Windsor Park belonged to the Indian team as they folded West Indies at a score of 150 runs in just 64.3 overs. Starting the second day of the first Test match at 80-0, the Indian cricket team continued their domination.
Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal showed great patience and class throughout the day and hammered the West Indies bowlers all over the park. The duo brought up their respective half-centuries in the first session and went into lunch at a comfortable score of 146-0.
The second session brought a merry time for the young Jaiswal as he became the first Indian batter on this West Indies tour to record a century. On the first ball of the 70th over, the 21-year-old tossed the ball by Alick Athanaze towards square on the on-side to collect one run and complete his maiden century in the longest format of the sport.
The opening batter joined the likes of Rohit Sharma and Prithvi Shaw for smacking a century on Test debuts vs West Indies. Meanwhile, he is also the 17th Indian batter and the fourth youngest Indian player to score a century on his Test debut.
Yashasvi Jaiswal created history on the second day of the first Test match
The Uttar Pradesh-born batter did not just stop after collecting 100 runs as he continued taking the case of the West Indies bowlers alongside the captain Rohit.
Meanwhile, it was after bowling 75 overs and four balls that the host team finally got some success. Athanaze struck on his debut as he dismissed the Indian skipper who gloved the ball before Joshua De Silva collected the catch with safe hands.
Though Sharma had to walk back after facing 221 balls in the middle, his innings was nothing less than a blockbuster. He also smashed 103 runs with the help of ten boundaries and two maximums.
The 229-run partnership stitched with Jaiswal played a key role in helping India take the momentum against West Indies and is the record opening stand between two opening batters for India against the West Indies.
After Sharma, the young Shubham Gill walked towards the 22-yard pitch to showcase his batting mettle. The Indian fans and the team management had high hopes for the Gujarat Titans star as he had a terrific time in the 2023 edition of the Indian Premier League. Also, ahead of the first Test, Shubman had revealed talking to the coach Rahul Dravid about his wish of playing at number three for the team instead of the opening slot.
The move did not reap any success for the 23-year-old as he failed to stitch a good partnership with an already-set Jaiswal and was dismissed for only six runs. The left-arm orthodox bowler Jomel Warrican took his first wicket of the day on the penultimate ball of the 79th over by dismissing Gill via an outside edge as Athanaze completed a catch in his safe hands in the slip cordon.
Virat Kohli walked in at number four and was eagerly waiting for his turn since India started batting on Day 1. The 34-year-old took his own sweet time to get settled in the middle. He faced 96 balls and scored only 36 runs with the help of one boundary. The second day of the first Test ended for India with a lead of 162 runs and a score of 312 runs. Jaiswal and Kohli will be resuming the play on the third day at scores of 143 and 36 runs respectively.
Though India is in a good position as they have lost only two wickets, the credit should go to the West Indies bowlers as well. The host team tried to make things difficult for the visitors as Sharma’s men could score only 232 runs after batting for 90 overs on the second day.
The West Indies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite utilized a total of nine bowlers and all of them will be hoping for a fresh start on the third day. Notably, this match holds great importance for both India and the West Indies as it forms a part of the 2023-2025 World Test Championship.