CUTTACK, India, CMC – Tail-ender Shardul Thakur lashed a late-innings cameo in a tense finish as West Indies lost the plot when it mattered most, to crash to a four-wicket defeat to India in the decisive third One-Day International here yesterday and suffer their 10th straight series defeat to the subcontinental powerhouses.
When captain Virat Kohli dragged on to seamer Keemo Paul (3-59) at the start of the 47th over for a top score of 85 off 81 balls, the match was hanging in the balance with India still requiring 30 runs from 23 balls to get up to a target of 316.
But Shardul, in only his second ODI in 15 months, then held his nerve amidst increasing tension to belt two fours and a six in a heroic six-ball unbeaten 17 as India overhauled their target with eight balls to spare, and achieve the highest-ever successful run chase at Barabati Stadium.
He punched the first ball he faced from Paul to the cover boundary and in a pivotal 48th over from left-arm speedster Sheldon Cottrell which leaked 15 runs, top-edged a pull for six over long leg before whipping the next delivery to the mid-wicket boundary.
With just seven runs required from the last 12 balls, Thakur turned the second ball of the penultimate over from Paul to the fine leg boundary, sprinted a couple of the next delivery before a no-ball brought an anticlimactic end to the contest.
Almost unnoticed, Ravindra Jadeja finished unbeaten on 39 from 31 deliveries but it was openers KL Rahul (77) and Rohit Sharma (63) who laid the foundation with gallant half-centuries in their second consecutive century stand.
Bidding for their first series win on the subcontinent in almost two decades, West Indies laid down the gauntlet when they gathered 315 for five off their 50 overs, after being sent in.
Left-hander Nicholas Pooran punched an exhilarating 89 from 64 balls to notch his second straight half-century while captain Kieron Pollard, with just 35 runs from his previous three innings, belted a 51-ball unbeaten 74 – his first ODI half-century in just over three-and-half years.
Opener Shai Hope extended his excellent form with 42 off 50 balls and was joined by Roston Chase (38) and Shimron Hetmyer (37) who both got starts but failed to build.
Hope and Evin Lewis (21) put on 57 for the first wicket wicket but neither innings was particularly brisk, and when left-hander Lewis holed out in the deep off Jadeja’s left-arm spin at the end of the 15th over, the Windies were chugging along at only 3.8 runs per over.
The decision to send Chase at number three failed to help the Windies’ cause as 13 runs trickled from the next 26 deliveries before Hope, who counted five fours in an elegant knock, was bowled by seamer Mohammed Shami in the 20th over trying to work one through the on-side.
With the run rate having fallen further to 3-½ run per over, the Caribbean side were in need of urgency and got it through the arrival of Hetmyer who crunched a brace of fours and sixes in a 33-ball knock, in adding 62 for the third wicket with Chase.
But seamer Navdeep Saini (2-58) accounted for both in successive overs with 12 runs added, Hetmyer taken at fine leg off a pull and Chase yorked off stump after 48 balls at the crease and hitting just three fours, as West Indies stumbled to 144 for four in the 32nd over.
Forced to rebuild, Pooran and Pollard launched a stunning counter-attack as they put on an up tempo 135 for the fifth wicket off a mere 98 balls.
While Pooran struck 10 fours and three sixes, Pollard traded almost entirely in sixes – seven times clearing the ropes while notching three fours – as West Indies blasted 118 runs off the last 10 overs.
With West Indies gaining a solid foothold, Shardul broke the stand when Pooran holed out to deep point in the 48th over which went for 21 runs but Pollard then nearly single-handedly gathered 32 runs from the last two overs, as the visitors ended strongly.
India then controlled their run chase perfectly from the outset, Rahul and Rohit posting 122 off 128 deliveries to put the pressure back on the Windies.
Rahul struck eight fours and a six off 89 balls while Rohit’s knock came at a run-a-ball, also with eight fours and a six, before ending courtesy a catch at the wicket off seamer Jason Holder in the 22nd over.
Rahul added a further 45 for the second wicket with Kohli but his dismissal, looping a simple leg-side catch to wicketkeeper Hope off pacer Alzarri Joseph in the 30th over, led to an India slide that saw four wickets tumble for 61 runs.
On 228 for five in the 39th over and with the required run rate rising to nearly eight runs an over, India needed a partnership and got it through Kohli and Jadeja who put on 5
8 for the sixth wicket.
Kohli struck nine fours as he posted his 55th ODI fifty and seemed poised to take his side over the line before Paul got him to play on to a wide ball.