Christopher Barnwell’s clean, hope-inspiring hitting in the last three overs could not make up for an earlier lack of acceleration by his West Indies teammates, as India began their tour of the Caribbean with a 16-run victory in the lone Digicel Pearls T20 yesterday.
The weather held up on a cloudy Saturday long enough to allow an expectant Queen’s Park Oval to witness a keen contest, won by the 50-over world champions because of their onslaught during the last five overs of their innings after they were invited to bat first.
Man Of The Match Subramaniam Badrinath throttled 43 off 37 balls (five fours). He was eventually caught by wicketkeeper Andre Fletcher as he edged a sharp Devenrda Bishoo leg-break at the start of the 19th over. But by then he had contributed to a late innings effort that produced 72 runs off the final 30 balls of the innings.
Guyanese all-rounder Christopher Barnwell was a vicitim of India’s mad rush, his two overs going for 24 runs – including three sixes and one four – as Badrinath, Rohit Sharma (26, 23 balls) Yusuf Pathan (15, six balls) and Harbhajan Singh (15 not out, seven balls) punished some indisciplined West Indies bowling.
Harbhajan and his fellow bowlers conceded just three wides in seven extras, as opposed to the ten wides and two no-balls Barnwell and company gave away. Such slackness was perhaps most keenly evident in the 16th over bowled by Ravi Rampaul. Up until then, the bowlers had kept things in check at 87 for four on a pitch with something in it for them.
Captain Darren Sammy personally justified his decision to bowl first by taking the first four wickets – openers Parthiv Patel, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli and India skipper Suresh Raina.
He started off in the third over as Dhawan steered a lifting delivery into ’keeper Fletcher’s gloves, while Kohli skied a catch to Danza Hyatt as he tried to play to the on-side and next ball Patel sliced him to Marlon Samuels at short third man. Raina completed the set with a driven catch to mid-on.
However, in that 16th over, a very smart one-handed Samuels catch at mid-off as Badrinath drove at Rampaul was disqualified by TV umpire Joel Wilson who ruled that Rampaul had overstepped the bowling crease.
It was a very tight call. The resulting free hit saw Barnwell on the cover boundary unable to get rid of the ball he caught before he collided with the ropes. Badrinath celebrated further by lifting Rampaul over the long-on boundary as 11 runs came off the over.
Badrinath again found favour with the officials when in the next over and his score on 37, he survived a stumping appeal by Fletcher off Bishoo. Square-leg umpire Peter Nero backed himself and did not call for a TV replay. Had he done so, Badrinath may well have been on his way.
India had picked up momentum and their eventual 159 for six was a good total to defend.
Building momentum, however, was what the West Indies batsmen were unable to do in their run chase. Their struggles to dominate the Pakistan bowling were mirrored by their sluggishness.
The loss of Simmons – dubiously adjudged caught at slip off off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin (nine) – and Fletcher bowled backing away to Munaf Patel in the space of three deliveries did not help.
Daren Bravo and Marlon Samuels could not force the ball away as they desired or the asking rate required. The rate kept climbing slowly but surely, like an ageing car up a steep hill.
Nevertheless, the pair kept the Windies in the match with a third-wicket partnership that yielded 66 runs in 14 overs and one ball. But then Harbahajan spun the match India’s way by removing them both.
In the 16th over, Samuels (27, 29 balls, three fours) attempted a slog/sweep but only managed a top-edge to wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel: 88 for three.
The batsmen had crossed while the ball shot high into the air. Bravo (41, 41 balls, five fours), who had begun to find the boundary, then swept Harbhajan for four but was bowled right after, trying a less smooth repeat next delivery: 92 for four.
The quick departure of those two left skipper Sammy and company needing to find another 68 runs in four overs. Sammy (zero) did not help at all, holing out at long-off.
But then came Barnwell. Playing just his second game for West Indies, he made a case for future selection in T20s with spirited, clean hitting that brought him an unbeaten 34 from just 16 balls.
Barnwell twice put Ashwin over the boundary in the 18th over, the second effort, a sweetly timed hit into the CL Duprey Stand at long-off.
In the next over Barnwell also banged a Patel full toss over the midwicket boundary. His work drew a warm smile and encouraging applause from Chris Gayle, confined for the moment to being a West Indies spectator.
