Reality check for West Indies

Chasing 186, the Windies folded for 140 in 19.2 overs. Barring the brief opening onslaught by Chris Gayle (20 from 13 balls), the West Indians looked ordinary and terribly short of match practice losing wickets in a heap to go down by 45 runs. 

“This was a fantastic experience for us and there’s a lot to take from this game. Wickets kept falling in a cluster, that’s something we can improve on. There’s always room for improvement,” Taylor said at the post-match news conference on Thursday. 

“We have been playing together for the last two weeks. We’re a happy bunch together, we’re just sharing each other’s’ experience. We have to get to drawing board.”  

A bitter feud with the Cricket Board over payments marred the West Indies’ preparations and that was evident in last night’s game, exploited well by Indian spinners Pawan Negi (2/15) and Ravindra Jadeja (2/26). 

Pacer Mohammed Shami too returned to action after a prolonged injury layoff taking 2/30, while Hardik Pandya claimed two to bundle the Windies out.