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Thu, 22 August 2019
1st Test: Rahane hits fifty before rain stops play
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23:57 India recover to 134-4 at tea on Day 1
India 134-4 (47.2 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Rahane drives a full delivery from Cummins through the covers for a couple to bring up his fifty, from 117 balls.
This has been a solid innings from the Indian vice-captain as he comes to his team's rescue in a crucial juncture.
When he walked out to bat, India were reeling on 25 for three, following three early wickets.
In the next over, Vihari clips Chase through midwicket for two runs and then picks a single before Rahane defends the rest of the over.
The match is interrupted by rain as the umpire calls the players off the ground.
India have recovered to 134-4 in 47.2 overs courtesy of Rahane's solid innings of 50 from 122 balls, while Vihari is unbeaten on 18. The duo have put on 41 from 78 balls for the fifth wicket to steady the innings in the post-lunch session.
The umpires have also called for early tea while the players are forced off the field due to rain.
23:34 Rahane, Vihari drive India forward
India 129-4 (45 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Rahane goes right back and cuts a short ball from Chase behind point for a couple.
The India vice-captain, on 40, then gets a leading edge as he tries to loft it over the leg side but Cummins running back from mid-on drops the catch despite getting under it and getting both his hands on it.
An opportunity missed for West Indies, especially the key wicket of Rahane, which would have exposed the Indian lower order.
Rahane has another reprieve off the last ball. He gets a glove to the delivery sliding down the leg side but wicketkeeper Hope is unable to react quickly and take the catch.
Three singles off Holder's 12th over as Rahane and Vihari keep the scoreboard ticking to drive India forward in the post-lunch session.
Chase again tries the slider down the leg side but this time Rahane doesn't want to do anything with it and he picks a single off the third ball on the leg side.
Cummins comes back into the attack. And Vihari and Rahane continue to build the total with four singles from the pacer's sixth over.
Chase slips down the leg side as Vihari sweeps it fine for a four and then steers the next past the slip fielder and rushes back for the second.
Vihari goes back for the pull but the short ball bounces more than expected and he somehow manages to swat it on the leg side.
23:15 Rahane takes India past 100
India 110-4 (40 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Holder comes back for another spell. He starts with a poor delivery, full and on the pads, as Rahane clips it through square leg for a four and plays out the remaining five deliveries.
Chase concedes just two singles in his second over, with Vihari getting off the mark with one on the leg side and Rahane picks one three balls later.
Holder drops short and wide as Rahane steers it past gully for a four to bring up India's 100, in the 38th over. He gets a thick inside edge off the last ball for a couple of runs through square leg.
In the next over, Vihari guides a short delivery from Chase through point for a four and then picks a single.
A really quick bouncer from Holder which comes in sharply and Vihari does well to sway out of the way, watching it closely till the very last minute and getting his head out of the way just in time.
The next ball is again short as Vihari leaves it alone easily and the pacer then pitches it up as the right-hander again defends watchfully, with Holder bowling another maiden over.
22:53 Rahul out for 44; India lose 4th wicket
India 93-4 (35 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Spin introduced as off-spinner Roston Chase comes into the attack. He strikes second ball with the wicket of Rahul, who is caught down the leg side to perish in a disappointing fashion.
Rahul, who played a good innings of 44 from 97 balls, tried to glance it fine but got a thin edge and wicketkeeper Shai Hope took a good sharp catch.
Hanuma Vihari defends the first ball to midwicket and then offers no shot to one down the leg side.
Vihari solidly defends the next ball and clips the last ball on the leg side as Chase begins with a wicket-maiden.
22:47 Rahul, Rahane steady India
India 93-3 (34 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Captain Holder is back into the attack, replacing Roach. He continues to keep things tight, bowling another maiden over to Rahul, the third in a row, and his fifth overall out of seven overs.
Change of ends of Roach. Rahane breaks the sequence of maiden overs as he drives a full delivery straight down the ground for three runs, the first runs after 21 deliveries.
Roach goes wide and this time Rahul crashes it through the covers for a stylish boundary before he defends the rest of the over.
Another maiden over for Holder as Rahane can pick only a leg bye in the over as he misses the flick.
A fielder placed very close in on the off-side at silly mid-off to the right of where the bowler finishes his run up. But Rahane continues to be watchful, coming right forward to defend the full deliveries and playing out the maiden over.
22:30 Rahul, Rahane steady India
India 85-3 (30 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Rahul batting with some purpose as he taps Roach on the leg side for one. Another half-volley outside the off-stump and Rahane feels confident enough to drive it through the covers for a four.
He had made 10 from 43 balls before the lunch interval but since the resumption has stroked 10 runs from 11 balls, to show some positive intent.
Rahane continues to grow in confidence. In the next over, a full delivery from Gabriel is drive down the ground past mid-on for a four, to make it three fours off the last three overs.
Rahane getting carried away as he then throws his bat at a wide full delivery without any footwork and is lucky not to have edged it.
Roach does well to bowl a maiden over to Rahul, who is content to defend and Gabriel does the same at the other end, bowling a maiden to Rahane.
India have reached 85 for three in 30 overs, with Rahul on 40 and Rahane on 24.
22:10 Rahul, Rahane steady India
India 75-3 (26 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Pacer Roach resumes proceedings after the lunch break. The first two balls are outside the off-stump as Rahane prefers to leave before he taps the next on the leg side and defends the last three balls as Roach starts the session with a maiden.
Gabriel from the other end. Rahul gets a thick inside edge off the first ball on to the box as he immediately goes down in some pain but resumes batting after a couple of minutes.
He then gets off strike with a single on the off-side and Rahane pushes the third ball straight past mid-off for a couple.
Gabriel then bowls a wide half-volley as Rahane drills it through the covers for a four in confident fashion, to raise the 50-run stand for the fourth wicket from 108 balls.
21:26 Rahul, Rahane rally India to 68-3 at lunch
India 68-3 (24 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane steadied India's innings after a few early wickets to take the visitors to 68 for three at lunch on Day 1 of the first Test against West Indies, in Antigua, on Thursday.
Rahul made 37 from 73 balls, while Rahane batted cautiously to score 10 from 43 balls, with the duo putting on an unbroken stand of 43 runs for the fourth wicket to guide India out of trouble.
Earlier, West Indies captain Jason Holder elected to bowl after the start was delayed by 15 minutes because of rain.
Pacer Kemar Roach gave West Indies a good start as he took the wickets of Mayank Agarwal (5) and Cheteshwar Pujara (2) in his third over.
Captain Virat Kohli also failed to fire with the bat, as he was caught at gully off Shannon Gabriel after scoring just nine.
India went in with KL Rahul as the opener with Mayank Agarwal, while Rohit
Sharma was left out along with experienced spinner Ravichandran
Ashwin.
Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami are the three fast bowlers for India, with Ravindra Jadeja is the lone spinner.
Vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane managed to retain his place along with Hanuma Vihari.
21:22 Rahul, Rahane rally India to 68-3 at lunch
India 68-3 (24 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Holder continues to probe just outside the off-stump as Rahane keeps defending. However, he edges one trying to poke at a wide one but he has played with soft hands which means the edge stays low and goes past the slips for a four.
Cummins is taken off as he Gabriel comes for another spell, with another 10 minutes to go for lunch.
Rahane continues to defend as he is content to just bat for time at the moment. Gabriel tries the short ball but Rahane is quick to latch on to it, pulling it behind square for a four as the fielder at fine leg runs across to his left but makes a poor effort.
Double change for Windies as Roach comes back from the other end. The first ball is too straight as Rahul clips it square for a couple and then takes a quick single off the fifth ball.
Rahul plays a nice cover drive off Gabriel but can't find the gap before he pushes the third ball in the gap for a couple. The pacer tries the bouncer and Rahul is happy to duck under it.
That's end the of the first session, as India reach 68 for three in 24 overs at the lunch break on Day 1.
West Indies elected to bowl after the start was delayed by 15 minutes because of rain.
The West Indies over rate is a disappointing 11.3 in the first session with the pacers bowling all the overs.
21:01 Rahul, Rahane steady India after early wkts
India 54-3 (20 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Holder continues to keep things tight from his end, as he sends down his third maiden over in succession, all three to Rahane.
Rahul breaks the shackles as he slaps a short wide delivery from Cummins through point for a four.
Two balls later, he drives a full delivery down the ground for another boundary to take his score to 22.
Holder bowling in a good channel as Rahane comes forward to defend but is beaten by the incoming delivery before he watchfully plays out his fourth maiden in a row against the West Indies captain.
Rahane has struggled to get started, scoring just one from 29 balls faced so far.
Rahul has batted fluently as he drives Cummins through the covers for a couple.
In the next over, Rahane finally breaks the shackles against Holder, clipping the second ball for a single -- for his first runs against the West Indies captain after 25 dot balls in a row.
Rahul then clips one off his pads for a couple before taking a single off the last ball to bring up India's 50, in the 19th over.
Cummins overpitches as Rahul drives it straight down the ground for a four as India reach 54 for three in 20 overs.
Rahul has grown in confidence to score 31 from 61 balls, while Rahane has made just two from 31 balls.
20:35 Kohli out for 9 as India lose early wickets
India 36-3 (14 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
First bowling change for West Indies as captain Jason Holder comes into the attack, replacing Roach, who bowled a lively first spell of 2/9 in five overs.
Holder makes a tidy start, sticking to good line just on and around the off-stump as Rahane plays out a maiden over.
Another change for West Indies as pace bowler Miguel Cummins comes into the attack from the other end.
Rahul takes a quick single on the off-side from the first ball and Rahane clips the third ball on the leg side for one to get off the mark.
Rahul hits a wide delivery square on the off-side but can't get it past point before he sees off the last two balls.
Holder follows it up with another maiden over, his second in a row, as Rahane continues to bat with caution.
In the next over, Rahul clips Cummins through midwicket for two runs and defends the rest of the over.
20:16 Kohli out for 9 as India lose early wickets
India 32-3 (10 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Roach gets the ball to bounce more than expected as Rahul is hit on the fingers and sustains a painful blow with the physio forced to come out.
He then runs the next ball past gully for a single to get off strike and Rahane plays out the last two balls.
Rahul tentative coming forward as he tries to drive Gabriel through the covers but gets a thick inside edge through midwicket for two runs.
The next ball is short as Rahul ducks under and does the same two balls later.
The last ball is pitched right up and Rahul makes most of it, driving it straight down the ground for a four past mid-off.
India are struggling on 32 for three in 10 overs, with Rahul on 11 and Rahane yet to score.
20:02 Kohli out for 9; India lose 3rd wicket
India 25-3 (8 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Rahul eases a full delivery from Gabriel through the covers for three runs to get off the mark.
Two balls later, Virat Kohli drives a full wide delivery square on the off-side for a four to get off the mark in some style.
The last ball comes in sharply as Kohli offers no shot and is struck high on the pads.
Rahul being very watchful as he carefully defends the first two balls from Roach and then offers no shot to the next. He then takes a quick single on the off-side and Kohli picks one off the last ball.
Gabriel pitches it up as Kohli drives it straight down the ground past mid-on for a four. The pacer then rocks Kohli with a cracking bouncer which nearly takes his head off but he manages to get out of the way just in time.
Gabriel then bowls another bouncer as Kohli goes for the pull but is hit on the arm, however the pacer has overstepped and is ruled a no-ball.
Another short ball but this time a bit wide and Kohli ends up steering it straight into the hands of debutant Shamarh Brooks at gully to perish for nine.
West Indies are making the new ball count as India are reduced to 25 for three, in the eight over.
19:48 Agarwal and Pujara out; India in trouble
India 7-2 (5 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Roach overpitches as Agarwal drives it down the ground with a straight bat past the bowler for a four.
Roach makes a good comeback as he beats the right-hander with one that goes away, who is caught poking away from his body and misses it.
Agarwal then offers no shot to the next two balls before he leaves the next and is then beaten by one which goes straight on, to go past the edge.
"It is astonishing," says Sunil Gavaskar on Ashwin's exclusion from India's playing XI for this match.
Rahul being very watchful as he resists having a go at wide deliveries from Gabriel, who is sticking to a line just outside the off-stump, as he sends down a maiden over.
In the next over, Roach has a huge appeal for caught behind turned down against Agarwal as West Indies decide to take the review. The full delivery moved away as Agarwal came forward to defend but got the edge as was confirmed by Ultra Edge.
Agarwal walks back for five as India lose an early wicket.
New batsman Cheteshwar Pujara gets a rude welcome as a short ball from Roach hits him on the arm. He then clips a full delivery through midwicket for two runs to get off the mark.
Roach strikes again in the over, this time with the big wicket of Pujara, who plays a loose shot away from his body to get the edge and is caught behind for two.
That was unlike Pujara as he plays a tentative poke outside the off-stump as India find themselves in early trouble on seven for two in five overs.
19:25 WI elect to bowl; Rohit, Ashwin left out
India 1-0 (2 ovs) vs WI | Scorecard
Karnataka duo and best friends KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal open the batting for India, while Kemar Roach will open the bowling for the hosts.
Rahul offers no shot to the first ball while he is struck on the pads next ball by the incoming delivery.
He then offers no shot to the next ball before he defends the last three balls to end the first over.
Shannon Gabriel to bowl from the other end. Mayank leaves the first ball and defends the next from the crease before Gabriel gets one to bounce extra as the right-hander leaves it alone. He then taps the fifth ball into the covers for a single to get India off the mark.
KL Rahul is lucky not to get an edge off the last ball as Gabriel gets some steep bounce and also some away movement to go past the edge.
19:06 WI elect to bowl; Rohit, Ashwin left out
West Indies captain Jason Holder has won the toss and elected to bowl against India in the first Test in Antigua.
'We were looking to bat first anyways. Looking to put runs on the board and attack with the ball," said India captain Virat Kohli at the toss.
He confirms that KL Rahul will open the batting with Mayank Agarwal, while Rohit Sharma has been left out along with experienced spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.
Vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane manages to retain his place along with Hanuma Vihari, while Rishabh Pant will keep wickets.
Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami are the three fast bowlers for India, with Ravindra Jadeja the lone spinner.
18:53 Rain delays start of WI vs India 1st Test
"Pace dominates on this surface. In the last Test match, the West Indies fast bowlers took all 20 wickets. Spin might not feature here, and it might all be about batting skills," reckons former West Indies batsman Darren Ganga in his pitch report.
18:47 Toss to take place at 1900 hours IST
"We will have an inspection by 9:20am local. If conditions are good, the toss will take place at 9:30am," tweeted BCCI.
The umpires will conduct an inspection of the conditions at 0920 hours local time which is 1850 hours IST and the toss could take place 10 minutes later if there is no rain.
18:43 Rain delays start of WI vs India 1st Test
The toss, which was scheduled to take place at 1830 hours IST, has been delayed.
But the sun is shining bright at the Sir Vivian Richard stadium and it won't be long before the umpires call out the two captains for the toss.
The India and West Indian players are out on the field doing their regular warm up exercises.
18:40 Rain delays start of WI vs India 1st Test
A win in the opening Test will be the 27th for Kohli as skipper and will put him on even keel with his predecessor Mahendra Singh Dhoni. A century in the game (19th as captain) will place him on par with Ricky Ponting.
On paper, a batting line-up that has Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant in the ranks should be termed clear but this West Indies team, led by Jason Holder, is no pushover.
England found that out the hard way at the start of the year when they lost a Test series 1-2 in some of the most lively pitches on the Caribbean islands in recent times.
One such pacer-friendly wicket was at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua where Kohli and his men will be facing the Windies first up.
Nevertheless, Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri, who recently got a fresh contract, will be wary of the challenge that can be posed by the new ball pair of Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel along with Jason Holder bowling his steady seam-up spells.
If there is pace and bounce, Kohli is likely to go with four specialist bowlers in which Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav will be fighting for the lone spinner's slot.
The three pacers, in all likelihood, will be Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami.
However, it is the batting combination that will be the skipper's primary worry and if he can get it right, that will be considered as a tactical victory.
In an ideal situation, if Hardik Pandya was available, Kohli would have been tempted to drop one among Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane but given the recent record of West Indies in Tests, he might go in with an extra batsman which means both will feature in the playing XI.
If a green-top is provided and Kohli still goes with five bowlers which includes Ravindra Jadeja as an all-rounder, it could well be a toss-up between the two Mumbaikars.
The other issue will be at the top of the order as to who will open with Mayank Agarwal.
The common logic says KL Rahul, who is a specialist opener, but Hanuma Vihari was sent to do the fire-fighting in Australia and it would be unfair to not give him another opportunity against a relatively easier pace attack.
A perfect combination and a winning start will be foremost on skipper Virat Kohli's mind when India take on West Indies in their inaugural World Test Championship opener, in North Sound, Antigua.
A win in the opening Test will be the 27th for Kohli as skipper and will put him on even keel with his predecessor Mahendra Singh Dhoni. A century in the game (19th as captain) will place him on par with Ricky Ponting.
On paper, a batting line-up that has Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant in the ranks should be termed clear but this West Indies team, led by Jason Holder, is no pushover.
England found that out the hard way at the start of the year when they lost a Test series 1-2 in some of the most lively pitches on the Caribbean islands in recent times.
One such pacer-friendly wicket was at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua where Kohli and his men will be facing the Windies first up.
Nevertheless, Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri, who recently got a fresh contract, will be wary of the challenge that can be posed by the new ball pair of Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel along with Jason Holder bowling his steady seam-up spells.
If there is pace and bounce, Kohli is likely to go with four specialist bowlers in which Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav will be fighting for the lone spinner's slot.
The three pacers, in all likelihood, will be Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami.
However, it is the batting combination that will be the skipper's primary worry and if he can get it right, that will be considered as a tactical victory.
In an ideal situation, if Hardik Pandya was available, Kohli would have been tempted to drop one among Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane but given the recent record of West Indies in Tests, he might go in with an extra batsman which means both will feature in the playing XI.
If a green-top is provided and Kohli still goes with five bowlers which includes Ravindra Jadeja as an all-rounder, it could well be a toss-up between the two Mumbaikars.
The other issue will be at the top of the order as to who will open with Mayank Agarwal.
The common logic says KL Rahul, who is a specialist opener, but Hanuma Vihari was sent to do the fire-fighting in Australia and it would be unfair to not give him another opportunity against a relatively easier pace attack.
18:30 Rain delays start of WI vs India 1st Test
Welcome to the coverage of the opening Test match between West Indies and India in Antigua, on Thursday.
The start of play has been delayed because of rain earlier in the day.
It has stopped raining at the moment but it could be a while before the toss takes place and the match gets underway.
The Indian players have come out to the middle and have started their warm-up exercises.
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