India steamroll West Indies in decider to clinch 13th ODI series in a row against the Islanders

After India’s disastrous slip-up in the second ODI that saw the hosts bringing themselves mighty close to what could have been a historic series triumph at Tarouba, the Men in Blue managed to turn the tide around emphatically, riding high on an imperious all-round display to clinch the ODI series 2-1.

India had a couple of changes from the last game which saw Ruturaj Gaikwad and Jaydev Unadkat making their way into the Indian squad while Rohit and Virat were rested for the final ODI as well. West Indies came into the series finale with an unchanged side as they hoped to emulate their momentum which was procured in the equalizer.

Sent into bat first, India got off to a flyer as Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan stepped on the pedal right away. In a shocking turn of events, the same West Indies side that was high on some electric fielding in the last game had a drastic change with catches going down while misfields and overthrows took the front seat.

Kishan was the aggressor while Gill would dispatch the loose deliveries to the ropes for the opening stand as the duo posted a staggering 143. The Indian wicket-keeper fired 77 from 64 balls before Yanick Cariah managed to throw him off the scent of his turner as Shai Hope pulled off a decent stumping. An incoming Ruturaj Gaikwad couldn’t really express himself as Alzarri Joseph managed to produce a sharp nick that was pouched by Brandon King at first slip.

Sanju Samson, who was handed another opportunity ahead of the World Cup, clinched itnwith arms wide open as a different strategy worked wonders for the right-hander. From the word ‘go’, Samson chose to step up a couple of gears while Gill played the anchor at the other end.

Samson departed for a well-constructed 51 that featured four humongous sixes before finally holing out to Shimron Hetmyer at mid-off. Hardik Pandya’s arrival in the center was a probable license for Gill to get his scoring jets on but the Indian opener missed out on what could have been a well-deserved century as he lifted the cherry straight into the hands of Cariah for 85.

Suryakumar Yadav didn’t really look comfortable for his short stay but managed to add 35 crucial runs before Cariah plucked an absolute stunner at backward point to send him packing. With wickets tumbling at a regular intervals, India’s scoring rate slowed down but the Indian skipper ensured that he stayed till the end, to unveil the pyrotechnics, ushering the Men in Blue to a momentous 351/5 from 50 overs while he stayed unbeaten for 70 from just 52 balls.

Coming out to chase a mammoth total, West Indies had an early stutter as Mukesh Kumar’s fiery spell blew away the Islanders totally in the opening powerplay. Kumar skinned the top-order of West Indies comfortably, claiming the big wickets of Brandon King, Kyle Mayers and Shai Hope to impart a dominating start for the visitors.

King was left bamboozled by a late wobble as he nicked it to Kishan while a change of angle worked wonders in case of Kyle Mayers as he played it down to his own stumps. Shai Hope fell for the scrambled seam, nicking it to Gill at first slip.

Things started looking bleaker for the hosts as the Indian bowlers found multiple infringements with their counterparts tumbling like a house of cards. Except for Alick Athanaze (32), none of West Indies’ top order got the wheels rolling. It needed a late shard of resistance from two very unexpected names that allowed West Indies to try and post something respectable.

Gudakesh Motie (39*), Cariah (19) and Joseph (26) tried to post a warring display against the rampaging Indians among the tail, but in vain. Shardul Thakur was the pick of the lot for the Indian bowling contingent, clinching four crucial wickets while Mukesh's early rampage comprising three important scalps was enough for India to seize a 200-run win in the series decider.

Gill was awarded the Player of the Match for his brilliant 85 while Kishan’s three consecutive half-centuries earned him the Player of the Series award.