Team India continued their dominance against the West Indies with further increase their lead as the team with the most consecutive bilateral ODI series wins against the Caribbeans. India won with a huge margin of 200 runs and won the series by 2-1 at Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba. The last time the country lost an ODI series defeat against West Indies was way back 17 years ago in 2006 by 4-1.
After the win, now Indian captain Hardik Pandya slammed the West Indian Cricket Board due to lack of basic facilities during their stay and added that “it’s time” for Cricket West Indies (CWI) to take note of and address the issues.”
“This was one of the nicest grounds we have played. Things can be better when we come to West Indies next time. From travelling to managing a lot of things. Last year also, some hiccups happened,” Hardik said after the game at the Brian Lara Stadium, as quoted by news agency PTI.
“I think it’s time for West Indies Cricket to take note of it and make sure that when a team travels… We don’t ask for luxury but we need some basic necessities taken care of.
“Other than that, really enjoyed coming here and playing some good cricket,” he added on Tuesday.
Ahead of the ODI series opening, Team India had also expressed their displeasure to BCCI after their late-night flight from Trinidad to Barbados got delayed by close to four hours. This left the players sleep-deprived ahead series opener.
Coming to the 3rd ODI, the match was led by Hardik in the absence of Rohit Sharma wherein he scored an unbeaten 70 runs off 52. Shubman Gill struck 85 off 92 balls while Ishan Kishan scored 77 off 64 balls and Sanju Samson scored 51 off 41 balls.
Skipper Rohit Sharma and former captain Virat Kohli were rested once again in the final match of the ODI series. Defending it, Pandya said the both players needed to be rested for the second and third ODIs against West Indies to help India give opportunities to youngsters ahead of the World Cup. “Virat and Rohit are very integral part of the team. And, you know, obviously, this was very important for someone like Rutu (Ruturaj Gaikwad) to get a game or Axar (Patel) to get a game because they’ve been playing cricket for so many years, they know how exactly all these situations have been. After their defeat, West Indies skipper Shai Hope described his team which some days performs as the best team in the world and other days get completely “steamrolled”.
Meanwhile, Team India will now square off against West Indies in a five-match T20I series which will begin on Thursday.
(With inputs from PTI)
