WI vs IND: 1st Test – Rahane fifty saves Day 1 after top-order collapse
A gritty 81 from Ajinkya Rahane helped India recover after the West Indies pacers wrecked their top-order on a rain-affected first day of the opening Test at Antigua. Rahane continued his form from the practice match and notched his 18th Test fifty. At stumps, India were 203/6, with Rishabh Pant (20) and Ravindra Jadeja (3) at the crease.
Check the full scorecard here.
Dream start for WI, a nightmare for India
The Indian top-order was in for a shocking start after Kemar Roach got West Indies the perfect one. Having elected to field owing to the rainy conditions, the hosts were bowling with their tail up and it paid off to a great extent. Roach dismissed both Mayank Agarwal (5) and Cheteshwar Pujara (2) in the same over, getting them to nick on both occasions to Shai Hope, the keeper. West Indies successfully used their review when umpire Richard Kettleborough failed to pick up Agarwal’s edge. At 7/2, the onus fell on the other opener, KL Rahul and captain Virat Kohli. But Kohli’s stay at the crease was also short-lived despite his solid start. Shannon Gabriel hurled a back-of-length delivery outside off that angled in, forcing Kohli to commit a rare mistake as he went for a cut above point. The Indian skipper departed for a 12-ball 9, which included two fours.
Rahul-Rahane restore order
Slated to bat at the No.5 position, India’s vice-captain had a lot more to do than just keeping the Windies bowlers at bay. He started with much caution, playing out as many deliveries to calm his nerves. Especially against Jason Holder who was coming at him fiercely. But soon, both Rahul and Rahane upped the ante and steered India out of troubled waters with much patience. The duo added 68 runs before Rahul edged one down the leg side to the keeper, falling six short of a deserving fifty.
But Rahane continued to weather the storm with growing confidence. He particularly punished the bowlers for anything short or in his arc. This time, he had the company of Hanuma Vihari, who was chosen ahead of Rohit Sharma in the Test. The youngster showed tremendous maturity to put up an important 82- run partnership for the fifth wicket. Rahane brought up his fifty as tea approached, with rain once again robbing precious game time.
West Indies bounce back
Vihari went on to impress as the last session began, but couldn’t withstand the aggression of Roach. The pacer squared him up, forcing him to defend as the ball died down towards Hope. Gabriel then got into the act as Rahane inside-edged a length ball outside off, only to chop on to the stumps. With both set batsmen back in the hut, West Indies breathed a sigh of relief.
Kettleborough’s bad day at the office got worse after he wrongly adjudged Ravindra Jadeja LBW off Roach’s bowling. But Jadeja confidently reviewed it and joined Rishabh Pant to bring up 200 for India. As the last recognised batting pair in the middle, both batsmen will want to add handsomely to India’s overnight score of 203.
