India vs West Indies: Misfiring top-order, letting Windies off the hook and other reasons why visitors lost 2nd T20I

After dominating their opponents for a majority of the ongoing tour of the Caribbean and the United States, Team India suddenly finds itself on the backfoot.

The Men in Blue, after all, are now 0-2 down in the five-match series against the West Indies, and are on the verge of suffering their first series defeat against the Men in Blue in six years. West Indies had beaten India 1-0 in a two-match T20I series in 2016 and would win a one-off T20I against the Men in Blue a year later, but haven’t won a bilateral contest against the Indians in any format ever since.

Both matches in the T20I series have gone down the wire, and on both occasions, it was the Rovman Powell-led hosts who managed to hold their nerve and finish the job.

Some late fight from the Indian bowlers. But Windies held their nerves to make it 2-0!#INDvWIAdFreeonFanCode #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/pq4N6A35Rp

— FanCode (@FanCode) August 6, 2023

After falling short by just four runs in the series-opener in Tarouba, where they hammered the Shai Hope-led Windies by 200 runs to clinch the ODI series, the Indian team rode on a brave half-century from Tilak Varma, playing his maiden international series, to post 152 on the board. That, however, did not prove enough for the visitors as West Indies ended up chasing down the target with more than an over to spare.

All’s not over for the Hardik Pandya-led side though, as they will hope to emulate what Australia achieved against them in a five-match ODI series in March 2019 and win it from 0-2 down.

The Men in Blue are short on experience in this series and are featuring a number of youngsters in their squad and in the playing XI with skipper Pandya setting his sights on the T20 World Cup that takes place in this region next year. Team India however, would not want to use inexperience as an excuse for their narrow losses in the first two games, and instead would look to make the most of the resources that they have and mount a counter-attack.

So where exactly did things go wrong for the Indians in the second T20I? We list some of the reasons below:

Misfiring top-order

One of the primary reasons why the Indian team think-tank as well as the selectors decided to part ways (unofficially of course) with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli in the shortest format was because of their inconsistency at the top of the order as well as their inability to accelerate from the word go and get the team off to flying starts.

One look at how the Indian top-three has performed in this series so far, and it certainly doesn’t paint a very pretty picture as far as India’s chances in next year’s T20 World Cup is concerned. Both openers Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill were dismissed for single-digit scores in the series opener at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba on Thursday.

Also Read | Jaffer calls for dropping Kishan; asks to give Jaiswal a chance

On Sunday, Kishan did managed to score 27 runs although that came at a strike rate of 117. While Gill (7) was dismissed for less than 10 for a second game in a row. Vice-captain Suryakumar Yadav too joined him in the pavilion after getting dismissed for 1, leaving India reeling at 18/2 in the fourth over.

Lack of support for Tilak

Mumbai Indians and Hyderabad batter Tilak Varma made an impact for a second game in a row, top-scoring for the Indians with a 41-ball 51 that contained five fours and a six, helping the visiting team cross the 150-mark towards the end of their innings. Varma had earlier made an instant impression on international debut during the first T20I, smashing two fours and three sixes during his 22-ball 39 — also top-scoring for the Indians in that innings.

Also Read | We need batters to take more responsibility, says Hardik Pandya

As was the case on Thursday, Varma couldn’t quite forge the one big partnership that the Men in Blue needed if they were to post a total in the range of 170-180, especially after the kind of start they got off to. Kishan (27) and skipper Pandya (24) were the next-highest scorers among the Indians, but neither was able to convert their start and hang around long enough.

Wasting a solid start with the ball

India had the West Indians on the mat with their early breakthroughs with skipper Pandya striking twice in the very first over of the chase to send Brandon King and Johnson Charles back to the dugout. King, who was responsible for getting Windies off to a promising start in the series opener, was dismissed for a golden duck this time.

Pandya Power