Nicholas Pooran played a masterful innings of 67 runs from 40 deliveries, leading West Indies to a comfortable two-wicket victory while pursuing a target of 153 runs. In the second T20I match against West Indies on Sunday, August 6, India faced another disappointing loss.
Nicholas Pooran’s outstanding fifty propelled West Indies to a two-wicket win as they chased down a target of 153 runs at Guyana’s Providence Stadium. Opting to bat after their unsuccessful pursuit of 149 runs in the previous game, the visiting team won the toss. Ravi Bishnoi replaced the injured Kuldeep Yadav, while the hosts remained unchanged.
Early wickets were claimed by West Indies’ Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav. Despite Ishan Kishan’s 27 runs from 23 balls, his attacking style faced challenges. However, Tilak Varma’s debut international half-century contributed significantly to India’s competitive total.
Sanju Samson experienced another lacklustre inning, while Hardik Pandya managed 24 runs from 18 balls. Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, and Romario Shepherd each secured two wickets for West Indies, dominating India’s batting lineup. In defence of the target, Hardik Pandya made an explosive start by dismissing Brandon King on the first ball of the innings.
He further removed experienced batter Johnson Charles after three more deliveries, putting India in a strong position. Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh added pressure by dismissing Kyle Mayers in the fourth over. Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell, who were the top two run-scorers in the previous match, repeated their success with a vital 57-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Powell contributed 21 runs before falling to Hardik, but Pooran continued his impressive form against India. Pooran’s remarkable knock of 67 runs from 40 balls, featuring six fours and four sixes, made him the highest run-scorer against India in T20Is.
Twitter Reactions After India’s Loss
Humiliation for the Richest board#INDvsWI pic.twitter.com/AevWE6sW3v
— Hassan (@HassanAbbasian) August 6, 2023
Time for this famous Tweet yet again only for Hardik Pandya.#INDvsWI pic.twitter.com/Q6fuiXgJUr
— Ehtisham Siddique (@iMShami_) August 6, 2023
Missed MS Dhoni captaincy in T20Is, who turn the match in favour 🥺
— Ashutosh Srivastava 🇮🇳 (@sri_ashutosh08) August 6, 2023
I would say, Team India without Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli nothing 💔#INDvsWI #MSDhoni #RohitSharma pic.twitter.com/Z4XaCoblzH
#IndianCricket #INDvsWI
— 👌⭐ 👑 (@superking1816) August 6, 2023
Time to accept the fact that Indian Team is nothing without Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli like ❤️ if you agree pic.twitter.com/QGTr8VKEbv
https://twitter.com/PriyanshuVK18K/status/1688255654673453056?t=gweqmNwhICzL7j_khoRGfA&s=19
If self trolling had a face.#INDvsWI pic.twitter.com/An0K9wdhqf
— Ehtisham Siddique (@iMShami_) August 6, 2023
https://twitter.com/SharyOfficial/status/1688252873920897025?t=DpPlz3yd-IXI_q2E3S0Dog&s=19
Pandya in the dressing room. #IndvsWI pic.twitter.com/qcxTpGICnH
— ex. capt (@thephukdi) August 6, 2023
https://twitter.com/SharyOfficial/status/1688253364457308160?t=XN0ug3IPJPhf66kfnOR0Jg&s=19
Indian cricketers to indian cricket fans:#INDvsWI pic.twitter.com/85cvxWKLVe
— Prayag (@theprayagtiwari) August 6, 2023
India making it look like Ashes 2.0. Close finishes, a great rivalry! Good advertisement for Carribbean Cricket.#INDvsWI
— Himanshu Pareek (@Sports_Himanshu) August 6, 2023
He surpassed the previous record of 500 runs set by former Australian captain Aaron Finch against India. However, Pooran’s wicket in the 14th over led to a comeback by the Indian bowlers.
West Indies suffered a collapse, losing four wickets while adding a mere three runs, nearly surrendering the match. However, tailenders Akeal Hosein and Alzarri Joseph revived the game with an unbeaten 26-run partnership for the ninth wicket. With this victory, West Indies claimed a crucial 2-0 series lead and achieved their first consecutive wins against India.
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