2nd T20I: India score 152/7 against WI; Tilak Varma impresses
India racked up 152/7 against West Indies in the 2nd T20I at the Providence Stadium, Guyana. The Indian batting line-up stumbled for the second successive T20I, with youngster Tilak Varma (51) saving their day. Opener Ishan Kishan scored a 23-ball 27, while skipper Hardik Pandya smashed two sixes in his 24-run cameo. Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, and Romario Shepherd took two wickets each.
India lose two wickets in Powerplay
India had a patchy start after electing to bat. They managed just nine runs in the first two overs. Joseph dismissed Shubman Gill in the next over, while Suryakumar Yadav departed through a run-out four balls later. Although Ishan and Tilak Varma steadied the ship, the Men in Blue were 34/2 at the Powerplay's end (0-6). The former departed before the 10-over mark.
100 T20 wickets for Joseph
Joseph added another feather to his cap after dismissing Gill. The right-arm seamer completed 100 wickets in men's T20 cricket. Joseph made his T20I debut against India in July last year. Standing in his 14th game in the format, he has raced to 23 wickets. He has made a significant mark in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
SKY plays his 50th T20I
Suryakumar has become just the 16th Indian cricketer to play 50 T20Is. He overtook Shreyas Iyer, who has appeared in 49 T20Is so far. Notably, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are the only Indians to have featured in over 100 T20Is. Besides, Suryakumar departed for just 1(3) in his milestone match. An unfortunate run-out marked his end in the fourth over.
Tilak slams his maiden T20I fifty
Tilak, who was impressive on his international debut, continued his terrific run. He came to the middle after India were reduced to 18/2. The left-handed batter started punishing the bowlers after settling down. Tilak finally reached his maiden T20I half-century in the 15th over. In the next over, Obed McCoy dismissed him for 51(41), a knock laced with 5 fours and 1 six.
67 runs in last seven overs
India were tottering on 85/4 (13th over). However, Tilak and skipper Hardik launched their counter-attack. In the final over, both Arshdeep Singh and Ravi Bishnoi found a boundary to get India past 150. Notably, India scored 67 runs off the last seven overs.
