India produced a spin-bowling masterclass yesterday as they defeated West Indies by 88 runs in the final game of their five-match Twenty20 series in Lauderhill, Florida.
Ravi Bishnoi took 4-16, while Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel bagged three wickets each as West Indies were bundled out for 100 in their chase of 189.
It was the first time in T20 internationals that all 10 wickets were taken by spinners.
Shimron Hetmyer’s 56 was the lone highlight of West Indies’ chase, with the team losing four players to a duck.
After opting to bat, India finished their innings on 188-7 with Shreyas Iyer scoring 64 from 40 deliveries and Deepak Hooda making 38 off 25 balls.
India had already clinched the series when they took an unassailable 3-1 lead on Saturday by winning the fourth T20 by 59 runs at the same venue
Patel, the Player of the Match for knocking back the first three early wickets, said: “My plan was to vary my pace. I knew wickets were slow and tried to bowl stump to stump. The main thing is that I need to back my strength because in T20s batters try to hit you. So you just focus on bowling good areas and using your strength and your pace. The wickets felt similar to the ones I played in the Caribbean earlier on. When I played the last two T20Is, it helped.”
BRIEF SCORES
India 188-7 (S. Iyer 64, D. Hooda 38, H. Pandya 28; O. Smith 3-33, D. Drakes 1-24, H. Walsh 1-33) beat West Indies 100 off 15.4 overs (S. Hetmyer 56, S. Brooks 13, D. Thomas 10; R. Bishnoi 4-16, K. Yadav 3-12, A. Patel 3-15) by 88 runs
Series result: India won 4-1
Indian players celebrate after winning the fifth and final T20I against West Indies at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill, Florida, yesterday. (AFP)
