The third T20I between India and West Indies on Sunday will have a bigger crowd attendance after the BCCI’s permission to the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).
The CAB had requested the BCCI to allow spectators in the upper blocks of all the stands at Eden. However, the cricket board has granted permission for the third and final game of the series.
“As discussed with other OB, as per your request, you can open up for the last T20 match against West Indies at Eden,” BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has emailed to CAB chief Avishek Dalmiya.
For the first two T20Is on Wednesday and Friday, some crowd has been allowed in the hospitality area and the Club House upper tier.
A couple of sixes towards the end by Rovman Powell but a brilliant bit of bowling towards the end by Harshal Patel ensures Team India defended their total. India wins by 8 runs and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the T20I series.
Just 4 runs off the 19th over. West Indies need 25 runs in 6 balls
Nicholas Pooran is gone for 62(41) and Bhuvi picks up the wicket!
WI: 159/3 | West Indies need 28 runs in 9 balls
100 plus partnerships for WI vs India in T20Is
126 E Lewis - J Charles (1st wkt) Lauderhill 2016
112*E Lewis - M Samuels (2nd wkt) Kingston 2017
100*N Pooran - R Powell (3rd wkt) Kolkata 2022
A boundary of the last ball and Harshal Patel concedes 8 off the 18th over. West Indies need 29 from 2 overs
Fifty in just 28 balls! Four fours and three sixes already - Rovman Powell is on fire.
Half-century for Nicholas Pooran with a six-over-long leg. Is this game slipping away from India? Also, if India does not start the 20th over in time here, that would mean 1 fielder extra inside the circle. WI 150/2 | West Indies need 37 runs in 18 balls
A shortish delivery and Powell hits it straight up in the air and Bhuvneshwar, who is under it, doesn't judge the swirling ball and is unable to hold on to the return catch. Rohit just kicked the ball in disgust and gave away another run. WI: 134/2 after 16 overs. West Indies need 53 off 24.
Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran amass 11 runs off Ravi Bishnoi's last over and he finishes his spell. WI: 124/2 (15) | West Indies need 63 runs in 30 balls.
Powell picks up a lucky boundary and West Indies score 10 runs in the over from Harshal Patel. India desperately needs wickets now. WI: 113/2 after 14 overs. | West Indies need 74 runs in 36 balls
Rovman Powell hits Ravi Bishnoi for a 6! Using the long handle and Powell smashes it over long-off for a huge hit. WI: 100/2 after 12.3 overs | 96 required from 48 balls
A short ball from Chahar and Powell pulls it away for a maximum. The Men in Maroon looking solid with their approach in the middle after losing 2 wickets. Can India breakthrough this partnership? WI: 91/2 after 12 overs
After the euphoria, a moment of shame for Bishnoi as he drops a relatively easy chance off the southpaw. Skipper Rohit Sharma isn't too pleased. Chahal has a forlorn look on his face. WI: 73/2 after 10 overs
Spin from both ends works for India. Ravi Bishnoi strikes in his very first over as Brandon King holes out in the deep for 22. WI: 59/2, they need 128 runs in 69 balls.
In this innings, Bhuvneshwar Kumar becomes the first Indian to bowl 200 overs in men's T20Is. Next over, Yuzvendra Chahal becomes the second Indian. Meanwhile, a boundary for Pooran as he cuts beautifully. WI: 51/1 after 6.2 overs
Chahal gets the breakthrough and Kyle Mayers has to go for 9. Fantastic captaincy by Rohit, bringing back Chahal in last over of power play. WI: 34/1 after 5.1 overs
Kyle Mayers with an exquisite cover drive which puts Bhuvi under pressure. Windies finally getting a move on after Brandon King opens his boundary count with a four off Deepak Chahar. WI: 22/0 in 3 overs
In T20Is since 2020, West Indies batsmen have 51.4 percent of dot balls in the first six overs. Only Bangladesh (51.6%) have played more among the top 10 teams. Good point by Gavaskar on why Ishan Kishan and WI openers are struggling to start well. They like to play through the line. When ball swings, they struggle
Brandon King and Mayers are at the crease. Brandon King is on strike. Bhuvneshwar will open the attack and five wides in the first over from Bhuvi. Not the start he would have wanted. WI: 8/0 after 1 over
India finishes on 186/5 in 20 overs. A magnificent batting performance by India, Rishabh Pant was just scintillating with his fifty, Virat also smashed a great fifty, superb finishing from both Venkatesh Iyer and Pant. Roston Chase was pick of the bowler for Windies.
Holder with a highish full toss, Pant whipped that over wide long-on. IND: 179/9 after 19 overs
It's raining boundaries here in Kolkata. 42 runs in the last 18 balls! India's middle-order sinking the Caribbean ship. Pant is not out on 33 off 18 balls while Iyer is giving him company on 23 off 11. IND: 152/4 after 17 overs.
Kohli departs in the 14th over. Roston Chase with another wicket. What a day he is having! The scrambled seam does the trick and beats Kohli completely! Excellent from Roston Chase. Two games in a row now. Brilliant change of pace too. IND: 110/4 after 14 overs
Virat Kohli gets to 50 with a six over long-on. Holder did get to it but the ball lobbed over the fence after hitting his hand. 30th T20I fifty for Virat Kohli. 100 comes up for India.
Meanwhile, Kohli continues to march along with another four! "Virat has played his greatest knocks when he has trusted his strike rotation and picking the right bowlers to hit!! His best T20 knock against Aus in T20 WC came like this!! He should just trust his method and play his game. Twitter pundits can go to hell !!," strong statement from Danish on social media.
It did seem like the ball stoped a bit and SKY was way to early in playing that shot and an easy caught and bowled. Three big wickets for West Indies in the first 10 overs of the game. IND: 72/3 after 9.5 overs
A mistimed shot from Rohit results in an easy catch for Brandon King. King dropped Rohit when he was on 2 runs, but this time takes a good, running catch to dismiss the Indian skipper for 19. India lose their second wicket. IND: 60/2 after 8 overs
Kohli's in good touch tonight and and he crunches this towards the on-side. He had already smashed a boundary in the over. And the Powerplay comes to an end with a six from skipper Rohit Sharma.15 runs from it. IND: 49/1 after 6 overs
How costly will that be? Remember- In T20Is since 2021, Rohit Sharma in the first six overs has a strike rate of 166 against pace as compared to 134.1 against spin.
FOUR! Virat Kohli opens his account with a four-off Akeal Hosein. But he is not done yet and brings out the sweep shot. That’s a rare shot from Virat Kohli but doesn't matter and he gets his second boundary of the over. IND: 18/1 after 3 overs
"15.25 crore comparisons incoming? Please don’t start. Judge Ishan Kishan for his 2022 IPL Performance + he didn’t ask for this price tag. The market decided it as Kushan’s Fair Market Value after bidding for him," says Arvind on Twitter.
Kishan survives a caught behind call but then falls to Cottrell a couple of balls later. A hint of outswing where Ishan tries to play that ball on leg side getting a top edge & easy catch on point. A big wicket for WestIndies. IND: 10/1 after 1.5 overs
Four courtesy of a wide and then back-to-back no-balls. A spinner shouldn't bowl a no-ball - a cardinal sin. However, the Indian batters don't take advantage of the free hits and Akeal Hosein leaks 10 runs in the very first over. IND: 10/0 after 1 over
Ian Bishop rings the bell. The Windies players take a knee while Indian openers have their hands on heart. Ready now. Rohit and Ishan Kishan are at the crease. Rohit is on strike. Akeal Hosein will open the attack. Let's Play
"We need to get back to our basics. It is a lightning outfield. Understand the game situation. Bat freely and see what we need to do after Powerplay. As a team, we want to improve in all departments. Whether we finish the game clinically or not, we need to improving. We have got the same team."
Rohit Sharma(c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal
Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Nicholas Pooran(w), Roston Chase, Rovman Powell, Kieron Pollard(c), Jason Holder, Odean Smith, Akeal Hosein, Romario Shepherd, Sheldon Cottrell
West Indies opt to bowl in the second T20I in Kolkata.
Here is where the members of Team India are residing in Kolkata.
"Virat Kohli needs to show a little bit of patience. Once he breaks that barrier, I am sure we will see consistent scores from him again. I am sure he is working as hard behind the scenes as he has been doing all these years, and with the same intensity. But, every cricketer goes through this phase where he is unable to score despite trying his best."
Rohit is in sight of another record that Aaron Finch holds. The 34-year-old is 36 runs away from becoming the 2nd highest run-getter against a single team in T20Is. Finch has scored 594 runs against England while Rohit is on 559.
With India opting for a six-bowler combination featuring pace bowling all-rounder Venkatesh, in-form batter Shreyas Iyer had to sit out of the opening game. “We were very clear with Shreyas, we told him the team wants that option (of an all-rounder) going into the World Cup. We need that option in the middle, someone who can bowl,” Rohit said after the match.
Towards the end of the second innings, Pollard was pretty unhappy with the ball being wet. The dew once again will be a factor and the teams will look to chase.
India will be locking horns against West Indies in the 2nd T20I of the 3-match series. India currently lead the series 1-0 after crushing the Caribbean side in the previous match. Can West Indies find enough answers against spin to keep the series alive? Or will India's winning streak, that's stretched to seven T20Is now, continue?