West Indies reached the final of the ICC World Twenty20 after they notched up a comfortable seven- wicket victory over hosts India in the second semifinal at the Wankhede Stadium here today.
| SCORE: WEST INDIES - 196/3 West Indies win by 7 wickets. |
END of MATCH An abysmal outing peppered with brain fades from one and all.. Right from Pandya's and Jadeja's buffet of bad balls, to getting Kohli to bowl the last over, to the no balls that handed West Indies a few reprieves, to letting them off the hook after having them on the mat in the powerplay, India have in many ways ejected themselves from the WT20, undoing the good work done with the bat by Kohli, Rohit, and Rahane... Though this doesn't take away from the Windies' performance, with Simmons, Charles and Russell doing what needed to be done for them, apart from putting in their miles during their outing with the ball.. WELL DONE, WEST INDIES... On that note, we bid adieu and take your leave.. Thanks for logging in and following our updates... WEST INDIES ARE IN THE WT20 FINAL.... 19.4 Overs - SIX... IT'S OVER FOR INDIA.. A slow full-toss, and Russell has deposited Kohli many, many rows back over mid wicket... 19.3 Overs - FOUR.. It doesn't matter if it's an edge, Russell's power is enough to carry the ball through square leg... 19.2 Overs - DOT BALL... Piched up leg cutter, and Russell mises it... 19.1 Overs - Full and on the pads, Simmons dabs it to midwicket for a single..Huge gamble this, by India... VIRAT KOHLI HAS THE BALL...Could easily backfire for India... 19 Overs - FOUR.... Russell again.. Jadeja fires it in full, and the giant goes down on his knees and smears it over extra cover... 18.5 Overs - SIX... More silence at the Wankhede... Russell gives it a wallop and three quarters... The bails sails high over long off...12 off 7 now... 18.4 Overs - Two runs off three balls.. The Lord has delivered so far with his darts outside off stump... 20 off 12 with 7 wickets.. Looking a bit bleak for India... 18.0 Overs - FOUR... All the good that was done with the first three balls of Bumrah has now been undone... Another straight-batted swipe from Simmons, and the edges flies over short third man... Thought for the day.. |
| <p><strong>17.4 Overs </strong>- SIX...Lady Luck is definitely not in the mood for showering benevolence upon India.. Simmons skies one towards deep midwicket after those dot balls... Kohli grabs it just near the rope, and relays it to Jadeja, who catches it.. Third Umpire, though, says that Kohli's foot was in contact with the boundary while throwing the ball away...</p><p><strong>17.3 Overs </strong>- DOT BALL.. Three in a row from Bumrah now... Keeping it full seems to be doing the trick against Simmons...</p><p><strong>17.1 Overs </strong>- Excellent leg cutter from Bumrah to begin with.. Simmons has to abort his agricultural mow after not being in a position to execute it...</p><p><strong>17.0 Overs </strong>- Good comeback from Nehra.. In and around the blockhole after that Russell swipe... 32 off 3 overs for the Windies, it is...</p><p><strong>16.4 Overs </strong>- SIX... Nehra, after bowling three good balls, decides to drop it short.. Russell muscles it over deep midwicket.. Not from the middle, but the man is a man mountain...</p><p>42 off 24.. We generally love palindromic numbers, but not today... Not today...</p><p><strong>16.0 Overs </strong>- SIX... This is not looking for India, and the fans at Wankhede will attest to that.. Simmons stands and swats Bumrah over his head for a flat six, and more grim faces abound the stadium...</p><p><strong>15.3 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Simmons takes a mow at a fullish Bumrah delivery that's has some pace taken off it, but the miscue runs off to third man for a boundary...</p><p>4-0-43-0 is what Pandya has done for West Indi... India...</p><p>55 off 30 for the Windies now....</p><p><strong>15.0 Overs </strong>- SIX... The free hit rubs more salt on the wounds that have been inflicted on Pandya's bowling figures.. Self-inflicted, we think... Simmons launches another monster over cow corner...</p><p><strong>15.0 Overs </strong>- BIG NO BALL.. Pandya finally, and ironically, gets Simmons' wicket, but the gods won't let him get away with a wicket with such pish posh.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Andre just top tiered that. In New Zealand that would have landed on another island.</p>— Jarrod Kimber (@ajarrodkimber) <a href="https://twitter.com/ajarrodkimber/status/715577893875748865">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p><strong>14.2 Overs </strong>- GARGANTUAN SIX... Pandya bowls another short ball, and Russell has sent an orbiter into the top stands behind mid wicket... 99 metres, that.. Even Kettleborough was left with his mouth forming an O...</p><p><strong>14.1 Overs </strong>- FOUR... BAM.. Russell murders another Pandya half-tracker through covers.. The latter has so not learnt his lesson for the day, we must say..</p><p><strong>14.0 Overs </strong>- While the crowd was busy applauding Kohli left, right and centre, Simmons has ambled on to a FIFTY from 35 balls... 120/3 they be...</p><p>Father-like son?</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Ok. <a href="https://twitter.com/imVkohli">@imVkohli</a> for president!!!</p>— Abhishek Bachchan (@juniorbachchan) <a href="https://twitter.com/juniorbachchan/status/715576465362800640">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p><strong>13.3 Overs </strong>- Kohli is pumped.. Aggressive preening, we might say... He can do so.. This is so his day...</p><p><strong>13.1 Overs </strong>- WICKET.. HOLY KOHLI.. YOU BEAUTY... Charles holes out to long off off a Kohli dibbly-dobbly for 52... He does things with the bat.. And then he takes a wicket with his first ball.. We are so running out of words to type for him...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (14).jpg" id="_2a4bee7a-60a7-4a26-967b-5e7fad5fc24c" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/22/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (14).jpg" width="120" /> </p><p><strong>13 Overs </strong>- FOUR.. Charles says that he wants to hit Jadeja for one, and the Lord acquiesces... Serves up a fullish dolly outside off-stump, Charles expresses his gratitude by bulleting it through cover point...</p><p><strong>12.3 Overs </strong>- The Lord is leaking runs in abundance... Full to Simmons, who goes down on his knees and doesn't propose.. He instead pummels Jadeja over cover point for a FOUR...</p><p>85 runs in 9 overs between them.. And Windies need 89 from 8 more.. Tantalising, indeed...</p><p>Game On, yell the commentators for the match.. We agree too.. Simmons and Charles are set for a nice little (sorry, big) end-overs onslaught...</p><p>Nails being chewed in Wankhede... We aren't.. We keep our nails trimmed, FYI..</p><p><strong>11.2 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Charles brings up his FIFTY with a 'I stall stand and treat you with utter disdain since you're not bowling as is expected of you' shot through cow corner...</p><p><strong>10.3 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Simmons again... Flar-bats Jadeja through point this time...</p><p><strong>10.1 Overs </strong>- Mumbai Indi... Sorry.. Simmons is helping WI out of the deep hole that India had dug for them a few overs ago... SIX...</p><p><strong>10 Overs </strong>- Pandya finally realises that bowling short all the time is not the best way to conceal his mindset, and pitches it up a little... Beats the bat of Charles, that... Had a bit of off-pitch movement too...</p><p><strong>9.3 Overs </strong>- FOUR.. ANOTHER short ball from Pandya, and again he gets the stick.. Charles bludgeons him through backward square leg..</p><p><strong>9.2 Overs </strong>- SIX.. More short tripe from Pandya, and that has been aptly carved over third man...</p><p><strong>8.5 Overs </strong>- ALMOST A FOUR.. Jadeja has his football studs on for India now.. Nice tap in at the teetering edge of the boundary.. Twinkle toes, he be...</p><p><strong>8.2 Overs </strong>- FOUR...Ashwin overcompensates and goes short and outside off, but Charles drags it from there and manages to beat a despairing dive from the fielder at deep midwicket...</p><p><strong>8.1 Overs </strong>- SIX... BIG from Charles.. Ashwin floats one up and Charles booms it over cow corner...</p><p><strong>7.5 Overs </strong>- FOUR.... Pandya's dangling short-delivery carrots for Windies, and after a few heave-hos that generated enough wind to make a tree sway, Charles finally manages to swat one through mid-wicket...</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">jadeja, nehra and raina have conceded less than 6.5 per over for the tournament so far <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WT20?src=hash">#WT20</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ShakeinIndia?src=hash">#ShakeinIndia</a></p>— Atreyo Mukhopadhyay (@ATREYO_TNIE) <a href="https://twitter.com/ATREYO_TNIE/status/715569561668419585">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p>Sorry for using caps.. We're trying to be like the TV commentators of today.. Build a LOT OF EXCITEMENT *cue roll of eye balls from everyone*... The Free Hit didn't fetch West Indies anything, by the way... 51/2 in 7 overs...</p><p><strong>6.5 Overs</strong> - WICKET... ASHWIN STRIKES.. AND IT'S A NO BALL... SIMMONS GETS A REPRIEVE..</p><p>More CS.. Correction... Ashwin into the attack now...</p><p><strong>5.3 Overs </strong>- So quick he be that he's rolled his arm over thrice, and has gotten mullered for a SIX over long on by Simmons...All this in the time taken to type out fifty or so words, mind you...</p><p>The Lord cometh.. Jadeja has the cherry for India..</p><p><strong>4.5 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Nehra goes short and Simmons pivots and controls a pull through backward square leg... Good-looking shot, that...</p><p>Bumrah and Nehra have swivelled the match in India's favour for the moment... The latter being a bigger contributor for bagging the West Indies' Big Cahuna, though Gayle's suspect — we were going for more incendiary adjectives, but decided against it — footwork had a big role to play too..28/2 in 4 overs..</p><p><strong>3.2 Overs </strong>- FOUR.. Charles again.. Bumrah gets more stick for going short... Through backward square leg this time...</p><p><strong>3.1 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Bumrah errs a bit in length, goes a little fuller, and Charles plants his backfoot and tonks him over deep midwicket..</p><p><strong>3.0 Over </strong>- WICKET.. Samuels can't pick Nehra's slower one, and his leaning edge is pouched comfortably by Rahane at mid off.. Definitely a far cry and a half away from the start that West Indies would have been hoping for...</p><p><strong>2.4 Overs </strong>- Good bounce from Nehra.. Takes off and hits Samuels on the chest even before his short-hand pull is completed.. That must have made him wince a bit...</p><p><strong>2.1 Overs </strong>- FOUR.. Charles this time for West Indies.. A 'stand-and-power-jab' from him off a Nehra fuller one.. Pandya at mid on had nary a chance to get his hand on that..</p><p><strong>2.0 Overs -</strong> FOUR.. A punch through cover point from Samuels.. Good timing on that, too...</p><p><strong>1.3 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Lovely stuff from Bumrah.. Takes off from length and Samuels can do nothing but waft at it.. The edge flies through third slip...</p><p>Samuels is the new man in for West Indies...</p><p><strong>1.1 Overs </strong>- BOWLED... GAYLE WALKS... Makes a hash of a fuller one from Bumrah.. The ball crashes into his stumps and lights the bails and Wankhede up...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (11).png" id="_0caad385-9674-41db-b3ef-4305b82663db" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/21/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (11).png" width="120" /> </p><p><img alt="f0d30eab7d17bf10940f6a706700a7aa.jpg" id="_2497ccc5-54c6-4fd6-8e82-0230ba2db672" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/21/original/f0d30eab7d17bf10940f6a706700a7aa.jpg" width="120" /> </p><p>Bumrah in for the second over.. Has two slips in place for Gayle.. This looks interesting...</p><p><strong>0.5 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Short again, but not enough bounce... Gayle lazily pulls it off his hips through midwicket...</p><p><strong>0.3 Overs </strong>- Lazy from Gayle... Full this time from Nehra, and Gayle almost french-cuts it onto his wicket...</p><p><strong>0.2 Overs </strong>- Gayle leaves Nehra's outside-off short-of-length ball alone.. The ball does a bit after pitching, too...</p><p><strong>0.1 Overs </strong>- A bit of shape for Nehra... Charles whips it off his hips for a single.. The big man is now on strike, ladies and gentlemen...</p><p>Nehra has the ball for India...</p><p>We're back after listening to the 'Uncle ka TV dabba' jingle for four times... And, Gayle and Charles walk in to the middle for the West Indies... On a very random note, despite being quite the asinine jingle, 'Uncle ka TV dabba' tends to get stuck in a loop in the head after a few hears... Wankhede is silent in anticipation of things that are to come...</p><p align="center"><strong>END OF 1st Innings</strong></p><p><strong><img alt="Capture.JPG" id="_2c3dbc63-d4ac-418d-b7ce-6af8bcc11b18" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/21/original/Capture.JPG" width="120" /></strong></p><p><strong>20 Overs </strong>- A single to close out their innings... Slightly anti-climactic, considering that 'double' has been their motto for the past hour and a half.. But, 193 is a daunting target, indeed... They need a Gayle Storm, and they need a big one at that...</p><p><strong>19.5 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Wide long on the destination, and Kohli's bat's middle the launch site for that missile...</p><p><strong>19.4 Overs </strong>- We believe that Mercury lent his boots to the Indian top order for the day.. Steal an extra single off a very momentary lapse in the field..</p><p><strong>19.3 Overs </strong>- DROPPED.. A slower one from Bravo... Kohli tries to cart him over deep midwicket, but the ball lands agonisingly close to Simmons, whose dive isn't enough ...</p><p>A tweet from TNIE's sports boss</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Kohli just unstoppable.. he has mastered the art of staying unbeaten in 20 overs in t20s.. super india <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IndvsWI?src=hash">#IndvsWI</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ShakeinIndia?src=hash">#ShakeinIndia</a></p>— Indro (@indraneel0) <a href="https://twitter.com/indraneel0/status/715553547480203265">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><p><strong>19 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Another one from the man who doesn't need the second innings to deliver the goods with the bat, or so we can safely exaggerate for now... Over Russell's head, this time...</p><p><strong>18.5 Overs</strong> - FOUR.... A wide yorker too doesn't work for Russell.. Kohli backs away and smears it over the cover fielder....</p><p><strong>18.3 Overs </strong>- SIX... Length balls aren't the best of ideas when it comes to this format, and especially this time of an innings.. Russell dishes one out for Kohli in his arc, and the latter launches him over long on...</p><p><strong>18 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Kohli smears Bravo's fuller ball through covers... Russell is big, and his dive despairing, but Kohli's power on that smash was just way, way, too much...</p><p><strong>17.4 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Kohli goes on one knee and swats another slower one from Bravo to Brathwaite at long on... He yorks himself with his judgement of the ball, though.. Goes under his cupped hands and over the boundary....</p><p><strong>17 Overs </strong>- FOUR: Kohli can place his mis-hits too.. Controls this edge as it races off through to third man..150 up for India with that boundary...</p><p><strong>16.5 Overs </strong>- FIFTY FOR KOHLI... The crowd in Wankhede erupts.. Celebrates more than the man himself, who is content with a cursory, gesticulatory wave of his bat towards them... He took 33 balls, by the by...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (9).jpg" id="_e5dae4e8-6361-4e26-b6b7-9f9d52b324ba" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/20/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (9).jpg" width="120" /> </p><p><strong>16.4 Overs </strong>- FOUR... Had enough of twos, these two, maybe? Short from Brathwaite and Kohli thuds it through square leg...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (6).jpg" id="_347f4e4e-3877-4647-8d1b-babdbcc72dca" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/20/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (6).jpg" width="120" /> </p><p><strong>16.2 Overs</strong> - Boy Dhoni is FAST... A TWO stolen, courtesy his quick-silvery legs...</p><p><strong>16.1 Overs</strong> - FOUR... Dhoni with an ultimate exhibition of pre-meditation.. Takes a Brathwaite full ball from outside off stump and paddles it over short fine leg....</p><p>Spare a thought for those here clacking away on our keyboards... We've earned our dinner like the West Indies fielders.. They've, though, earned that and a big, sumptuous breakfast for tomorrow with their effort on the field...6 overs and 133/2, the sove be...</p><p>What if Kohli is secretly from Hogwarts?</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Kohli is batting as if he just mutters accio ball when the bowlers are on their delivery stride.</p>— Swaroop Swaminathan (@arseinho) <a href="https://twitter.com/arseinho/status/715548884429221888">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p><strong>15.4 Overs </strong>- The TWOs keep coming for India.. Kohli and new man Dhoni continue what Jinx and the former were doing to the West Indian fielders... Rubbery arms, shoulders, and legs for them at the end of this innings, we are surmising....</p><p><strong>15.3 Overs </strong>- WICKET... Finally.. Out comes the trademark Bravo arm-sway jig as Rahane holes out to him at deep square leg off a Russell short delivery...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (7).jpg" id="_9f5eb78b-7112-4246-b0c2-65a6ebda777a" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/20/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (7).jpg" width="120" /> </p><p><strong>14.4 Overs </strong>- Full from Brathwaite, and Kohli carves it between point and backward point.. FOUR.. A synchronised-but-useless hop from the two gentlemen in those positions, though...</p><p>120/1 in 14 ovs... Kohli and Rahane with 30+ unbeaten scores... 200 on the cards, ladies and gentlemen?</p><p><strong>13.5 Overs</strong> - More cardio for West Indies' men manning the outfield... Another successful implementation of the 'slide, get up in the same motion, and release ball' algorithm by Charles at sweeper cover....</p><p>Ramiz should consider full-time journalism.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Tomorrows headlines' WI bowling plan ran amok by India's running between the wickets ' Fantastic athleticism ...Kohli & Rahane.</p>— Ramiz Raja (@iramizraja) <a href="https://twitter.com/iramizraja/status/715547058019631104">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p><strong>13.1 Overs</strong> - FOUR... Benn comes in.. Virat Kohli's cut behind point.. The camera — unsurprisingly — pans to Sachin's face...P.S: We have scrunched eyebrows here..</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (8).jpg" id="_95a86bd2-8d20-467d-a25c-7d5894904239" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/20/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (8).jpg" width="120" /> </p><p>Their gambol has turned into a canter... 109/1 in 13 overs for India....</p><p>What an observation!</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Rahane is like the guy who does a character role in movies.not hyped,but yet an important cog in the wheel making an impact always.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IndvsWI?src=hash">#IndvsWI</a></p>— wv raman (@wvraman) <a href="https://twitter.com/wvraman/status/715545634552426496">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p>12.4 Overs - FOUR... The 'slide-and-collect-at-boundary' routine is finally muffed up... So many for the West Indies today.. Had to happen... Rahane gets one through square leg, and Russell foot has touched the ropes...</p><p><strong>12.3 Overs </strong>- Another two for India as Rahane scampers through to the danger non-striker end.. Bravo's face after the throw hinted at annoyance..</p><p><strong>12.2 Overs</strong> - The Men in Blue canter past the 100-run mark... Canter, did we say? Run.. The word is run... They literally ran past the 100-run mark, much to Windies fielders' exasperation...</p><p>We still can't fathom as to what sudden cognitive bolt out of the blue made Kohli go for that bye... But, we're glad.. So, very, glad... No.. Not a jinx... Not a jinx at all...We're 99/1 in 12.1 overs, by the way..</p><p><strong>11.2 Overs </strong>- Rahane and Kohli are testing the Windies fielders' arms... The former steals a two with a nurdle to wide mid on, and Braithwaite's throw comes in a little too late..</p><p>92/1 is what the scoreboard says...</p><p><strong>11.0 Overs </strong>- A relatively uneventful over as compared to the previous... Don't think any of us here will be needing Adrenaline shots — even if the actual need arises — for the next two days...</p><p>P.S: Yoda fans, we be... Read our sentences this way, that's why...</p><p>86/1 at the halfway mark... Tasty indeed, this match's poise be..</p><p><strong>9.5 Overs </strong>- KABOOM... A rare half tracker from Badree... Rahane says gracias, rocks back, and thumps it through deep midwicket...</p><p><strong>9.2 Overs</strong> - A good cut from Rahane backward of point... Made the fielder at sweeper cover earn his salary for the day.... Two runs...</p><p><strong>8.5 Overs</strong> - He should be called Vi-CAT Kohli.. Two lives already, that too in two balls... Two almost run-outs later, the man gets a FOUR...</p><p><strong>8.3 Overs</strong> - Oh dear lord... India collectively had their hearts in their mouth... A mix up, Kohli is stranded halfway down the track, and Bravo misses his underarm throw.. Kohli has a wry and slightly-pained smile on his face.</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (4).jpg" id="_5f56b9d0-d073-401f-91a6-3003d009fa37" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/20/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (4).jpg" width="120" /> </p><p><strong>8.3 Overs </strong>- Another bouncer.. The umpire says NO BALL.. FREE HIT with our chase master on strike, ladies and gentlemen...</p><p><strong>8.2 Overs</strong>: That one bounced... Kohli sways out of the way, unfazed...</p><p><strong>8.1 Overs </strong>- Unsurprisingly, starts off with an off cutter... Rahane obliges and gets a single with a prod to midwicket...</p><p>Bravo into the attack for the Windies..</p><p>Kohli walks in, gritty-faced as usual... We're confident that even our unintentional jinxes can't get this man to walk back to the pavilion...</p><p><strong>7.2 Overs</strong> - We. Are. So. Sorry. Sigh.. Badree has struck for the Windies.. Rohit is undone by the one that goes with the arm... LBW.. Double sigh...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (3).png" id="_921ec90f-148d-4985-9525-d20cacaf73f2" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/19/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (3).png" width="120" /> </p><p>Hey.. We made it through for the FIRST TIME IN THIS T20 THROUGH THE POWERPLAYS WITHOUT LOSING A WICKET... YAAAY...</p><p><strong>6.4 Overs</strong> - Good running from Rahane... Converting a single into two, and not to mention playing the second-fiddle role perfectly to the hilt so far..</p><p><strong>6.2 Overs</strong> - Benn back into the attack for Windies, and Rohit does a 'hop and tap it to midwicket' routine to get a single...</p><p><strong>5.5 Overs </strong>- Russell is serving up a buffet of bad balls, and not even his mohawk can distract Rohit.. FOUR.. That one through midwicket, replete with a resounding thwack...</p><p><strong>5.4 Overs</strong> - We were typing out a whiny, 'we need a move on' comment, but Rohit made us delete it halfway through with his orbit finders... FIFTY UP...</p><p><strong>5.2 Overs </strong>- THAT'S EVEN BIGGER... Sharma decides to get some moondust on the ball... Monster whack over long on...</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor (2).png" id="_5cf9d9d3-c399-42ff-bfd3-e68b5b521da6" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/19/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor (2).png" width="120" /> </p><p><strong>5.2 Overs</strong> - MONSTER SIX.... Rohit again.. "Who needs footwork", he says, taking a Russell full toss and depositing it way, way over square leg... A FREE HIT, too...</p><p><strong>5.0 Overs</strong> - Russell to roll his arm over for the Windies...</p><p>Interesting thought from our sports reporter.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Dwayne Bravo with a better first touch there than Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud put together.</p>— Swaroop Swaminathan (@arseinho) <a href="https://twitter.com/arseinho/status/715536562361016320">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p><strong>4.4 Overs</strong> - Mount Vesuvius, mind you, is a Stratovolcano.. We're good at Wiki-ing the hell out of things... And, as we typed this Badree got Rahane's edge that ended up as a FOUR, and Bravo did a neat little stop-tap with his foot to save one at long on..</p><p><img alt="India World T20 Crick_Geor.png" id="_3ed703e3-b003-401c-a4de-df22023dd3c8" src="http://images.newindianexpress.com/uploads/user/imagelibrary/2016/3/31/19/original/India World T20 Crick_Geor.png" width="120" /> </p><p>Hope it all changes today.</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">rahane hasn't hit a 50 in 17 T20Is since 61 on debut <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WT20?src=hash">#WT20</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ShakeinIndia?src=hash">#ShakeinIndia</a></p>— Atreyo Mukhopadhyay (@ATREYO_TNIE) <a href="https://twitter.com/ATREYO_TNIE/status/715534882135388161">March 31, 2016</a></blockquote><script charset="utf-8" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" /><p><strong>3.5 Overs</strong> - Spinners are our bane... By the time we turn our head towards the TV, they've bowled five balls and conceded TWO FOURS.. Rohit, by the way, off Benn...</p><p>For a man who slammed 61 on his T20I debut, Rahane has been a bit of a Vesuvius for the nation... No fifty-plus scores in seventeen matches since..</p><p>Another toss-related trivia for you all... The team that predicted correctly as to how the coin would fall has won the match...There... That's our attempt to reverse-jinx India into winning...</p><p><strong>2.4 Overs</strong> - A quick exchange of singles from the men in the middle... Sharma is back on strike..</p><p><strong>2.1 Overs</strong> - SIX.. This was coming... Stand and deliver from Rohit, and Braithwaite was to blame.. Length and straying into the man's pads...</p><p><strong>2.0 Overs</strong> - Another jab to mid on for a single by Rohit... Quite the sedate start for the Men in Blue...</p><p><strong>1.4 Overs</strong> - Good wicket-to-wicket stuff being doled out by Badree... Rahane is searching for room, but none on offer.</p><p>By the by, Dhoni's luck with the coin has been quite dismal so far at this event... Just one out of five...Badree in for the second over...</p><p><strong>0.5 Overs </strong>- Rahane gets his first run in this WT20 with a dropped-hands dab down to square leg...</p><p><strong>0.4 Overs </strong>- A misfield at mid on, and Rohit is finally off the strike..</p><p>That's how the man tends to begin, though...</p><p><strong>0.2 Overs</strong> - Rohit being his usual circumspect-self... Russell's good length ball whizzes past his half-hearted waft...</p><p>Not to mention that Rahane hasn't been in the best of form in T20s of late.. 0, 22, 25, 4... His last four outings definitely don't making for a good read...</p><p>The former scored 7 against West Indies in their warm-up clash in the tournament... Time to make this opportunity count...</p><p>Rahane and Rohit to take to the field for the Indians... This should be interesting...</p><p>And, the Men in Blue get their turn...</p><p>The national anthems are now underway... West Indies doing the first honours...</p><p>West Indies skipper Darren Sammy won the toss and elected to bowl against India in the second semifinal of ICC World Twenty20 here today</p></td></tr></table> |