Hello and welcome to Sportstar’s LIVE coverage of the first T20I between India and West Indies from Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Cottrell swings it away from Kishan outside off and on a length; beats Kishan who tries to steer it fine. This one is guided to third man for a single with an open face.

IND 11/0 in 2 overs: Shepherd from the other end. Dot to Rohit to start with. Rohit takes one with an inside edge that trickles to mid on. Drifting on the pads and Kishan whips it away for one more. Shapes away, yorker length and Rohit jams his bat down in time to keep it away. SIX! Full and down leg and Rohit flicks it over square leg.  Regal shot and sweet sound off the willow.

IND 3/0 in 1 over: Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma are in the middle to begin India’s chase. Sheldon Cottrell has the new ball. A bit of in-swing first up and Rohit flicks this full one over mid wicket for a single. Drifting down leg to Kishan; tucked away straight to short fine leg. Decked in short on off and Kishan is late on the pull it goes back to the bowler. Kishan guides it to third man for a couple to get off the mark. Shapes away the last one from a length and Kishan misses.

WEST INDIES 157/7 IN 20 OVERS

WI 157/7 in 20 overs: FOUR! Dug in and angling down leg from Harshal and Pollard pulls it awkwardly to the fine leg boundary. Full and wide outside off and Pollard digs it out to long off for one. Punched down the ground by Odean for one more. Crunched back past Harshal by Pollard but again manages just a single. Seven runs from four ball in the over so far. Slower one outside off and another wide. Yorker on middle and off and Odean flicks it for a couple. OUT! Odean holes out. He looks to loft it straight but skies it high off the toe end of the bat. Rohit takes a good one at mid off. Odean Smith c Rohit Sharma b Harshal Patel 4(4b 0x4 0x6).

WI 151/6 in 19 overs: SIX! Bhuvi goes full and just outside off and Pollard clear his front foot and launches it over long on. Another big heave on the leg side but a top edge on this and just a couple of runs. Length and very wide outside off; wide ball. Just keeps it out of Pollard’s reach outside off and inside the tramline; he swings and misses. Pollard crunches this one with a pull and Chahar stops it at square leg but has hurt himself in the process. He is walking off the field and Hooda replaces him. Deepak in for Deepak! Odean Smith is off the mark with a swat down long on for a single. Short and wide outside off and Pollard slaps it to long on for one more. He will keep the strike for the final over.

WI 135/6 in 18 overs: Harshal into the attack. Pollard skims the first one to third man for a single. SIX! Slow, full, outside off and Pooran hammers it over long on for another maximum. Yorker length but down leg side and that’s a wide. Two singles and a dot to follow. OUT! Pooran holes out at long on. He cannot get the distance as Harshal darts in another slower one. Nicholas Pooran c Virat Kohli b Harshal Patel 61(43b 4×4 5×6).

WI 125/5 in 17 overs: Chahal to bowl out. SIX! Tossed up on middle and leg and Pooran slop sweeps it over square leg. FOUR! Quicker and wider and Pooran slices it behind point and to the fence. That’s also a fifty for him, off 38 balls. Wide down leg. Floated up again on off stump and Pooran slashes through cover-point for a single. Spinning in to Pollard, on a length and he misses the big heave on leg side. FOUR! Full outside off and Pollard swats it to the long on boundary. A horrible fumble by Venkatesh and he seems to have injured his hand. Pollard flicks the last ball for a single at mid wicket.

WI 108/5 in 16 overs: Bishnoi bowls out. Tossed up on off and Pooran slaps it down the wicket and some sharp work from Kohli in the deep keeps it to a single. Slight shimmy down the track from Pollard and he missed the flick. LBW appeal but turned down; Rohit reviews. Very unlucky for Bishnoi. It was hitting middle stump but impact was umpire’s call and Pollard survives. Googly again but this one goes down leg; Wide ball. FIVE RUNS! Pollard tapped on the leg and scurried for one; Rohit misses a direct hit and it runs away to the boundary. FOUR! Pooran goes aerial over covers and finds the boudary. Beaten next ball outside off. Almost hands this one to Bishnoi. It was a slower one and Pooran was too early into the shot.

WI 96/5 in 15 overs: Chahal from the other end. Skiddy length ball and just outside off, cramps Pollard for room. Two runs from the other. Chahal mixes it well with the leg breaks and googlies and keeps it back of a length to ward off any front foot play.

WI 94/5 in 14 overs: Chahar back into the attack. Single to Pooran first ball with a thick inside edge to mid wicket. SIX! Length on off on offer and Hosein stands tall, goes on top of the bounce and pummels it straight down the ground. Three singles follow. OUT! Chahar gets his revenge. Dug in short on middle and Hosein top edged the pull, it went straight up and Chahar completes the catch. Akeal Hosein c & b Deepak Chahar 12(10b 0x4 1×6). FOUR! Pooran finds the gap in the deep mid wicket region with precision. Pulled away a length delivery on off stump with authority.

WI 81/4 in 13 overs: Googly from Bishnoi turns wide outside off and Hosein flicks through mid mid wicket for a single. One more for Pooran next ball. Another one turning away outside off and Hosein misses. This short one skids through to the off and Hosein almost gets a bottom edge to the keeper. Play and a miss outside off again and Bishnoi is all over the Windies batters.

WI 78/4 in 12 overs: Venkatesh Iyer with the ball. Pooran drives through off for a single. Length outside off, coming in a bit with the angle and Hosein hops to defend. Just four singles from the over.

WI 74/4 in 11 overs: Bishnoi back into the attack. The dew has started to form and it might get just that much harder for the spinners. Straight and full to Chase and it beats his flick on leg. Wide down leg side by Bishnoi again. OUT!  Hint of inward turn and Chase is beaten straight in front. Roston Chase lbw b Ravi Bishnoi 4(10b 0x4 0x6). Rovman Powell is in and paddle sweeps the first ball to fine leg for two. OUT! Powell slog sweeps this tossed up delivery on off straight to the man at long on. Two in the over for Bishnoi and what a debut this is turning out to be. Rovman Powell c Venkatesh Iyer b Ravi Bishnoi 2(3b 0x4 0x6).

WI 71/2 in 10 overs: Harshal into this second. Painfully slow to Chase outside off and the bat comes off the batter’s hand trying to guide it on the off. Slow again and chipped over covers by Chase for a couple. Steers the next one to third man for a single. FOUR! Length and another pulled again behind the man at square leg. Keeps a fuller one on off stump away with a tap down to cover. WIDE! This one is too far outside off. Short and room outside off on offer but punched straight to point.

WI 63/2 in 9 overs: Looped up on leg stump and Pooran stumbles trying to heave it on the leg side. Chahal gets the next one to turn in from middle and beats Pooran. LBW appeal is turned down however. Pooran flicks through mid wicket for one. Chase misses trying to sweep on the leg and Chahal appeals again for LBW and wants the review. Rohit obliges and India loses the review as the impact was outside off. Chase returns strike with a single at long on. SIX! Dug in short and Pooran pulls it away behind square leg for six runs.

WI 55/2 in 8 overs: Bishnoi from the other end. Pooran taps the first one to cover. Sharp turn outside off and too wide. Beats Pooran on the next delivery outside off. Very wide again outside off and second extra of the over. Beaten again outside off with a googly. Pooran punches off the backfoot for a single. Googly turns away down leg to Chase and another extra. Rohit thinks there is some bat on it and he reviews. Replay confirms there was no bat but it brushed the pad. Chase has his foot grounded too so the stumping appeal is also turned down. But the wide ball decision is also reversed.

WI 51/2 in 7 overs: Chahal into the attack. SIX! Floated up on off stump and Pooran hammers it down the ground. Bishnoi pouches it but steps on the boundary cushion and that’s a maximum. Flatter on middle and flicked through mid wicket for a single. OUT! Mayers misses a slog sweep straight in front the stumps and LBW given. Mayers reviews. Hitting top of off stump – umpire’s call – and he is gone. Kyle Mayers lbw b Yuzvendra Chahal 31(24b 7×4 0x6). Chase the new man in and defends the first one outside off from the crease.

WI 44/1 in 6 overs: Harshal Patel in to bowl the last over of the PowerPlay. Slower one outside off first up and Pooran leaves. Pooran dabs to short third man for a single next ball. FOUR! Mayers shuffles across to outside off stump and again pulls a shorter one behind square. A deceptive slower one outside off again and Mayers has no clue what to do with it. FOUR! This one was lucky. Slower and fuller and Mayers gets a thick outside edge to fly behind the keeper and to the rope.

WI 35/1 in 5 overs: FOUR! West Indies only dealing in boundaries. Short on off side and Mayers pulls over mid wicket and to the boundary. Short again and pulled again, behind square and sharp work from Harshal in the deep keep it to two runs. FOUR! Mayers makes room outside off to drive this one through covers. Guided straight to short third man for a dot to end the over.

WI 25/1 in 4 overs: Chahar angles across to Mayers. Another swing and a miss outside off. Good bouncer to follow and Mayers misses the pull. Clipped on leg side for one. He was lucky to get away with it as it dropped just short of deep mid wicket. SIX! Pooran picks it up from outside off and smashes it over mid on for the first maximum of the day.

WI 18/1 in 3 overs: Bhuvi over the wicket to Pooran. Beaten first ball. Nipped in from a length on leg stump and beat him. Pooran off the mark with a quick single at mid wicket. Back of a length on leg again and edged short of slip. FOUR! Length and straight and pulled away by Mayers through square leg. Slower one on leg stump and tucked on leg for one leg-bye. Close! Comes in sharply from off stump line, keeps low and has Pooran in trouble.

WI 12/1 in 2 overs: Chahar to bowl the second over. FOUR! Too full outside off and a wild heave from Mayers takes it to the deep mid wicket boundary. A thick inside edge actually as Mayers was looking to play on the off side. FOUR! Mayers finds the boundary off the last ball of the over after four dot balls. He came down the track and clipped it of his pads on the on side.

WI 4/1 in 1 over: Bhuvi to King from over the wicket. Swing straightaway as King swipes outside off and misses. FOUR! Outside off again and King slashes hard past point and to the fence. Straighter this time and defended back. It came back in a bit from leg stump. A peach! On a length this one and moves away sharply from Kings outside edge. OUT! Nipping away again and King comes forward to negate the swing and slices it straight to point. Brandon King c Suryakumar Yadav b Bhuvneshwar Kumar 4(5b 1×4 0x6). Pooran the new man in and shoulders arms outside off.

Chairman of the selection committee rings the famed bell before the start of play. Brandon King and Kyle Mayers will open the batting for Windies. Bhuvneshwar Kumar with the new ball. West Indians take the knee with their fists in the air.

18-54 IST: Both teams file out onto the field for the national anthems. West Indies is up first. India’s anthem follows. A sprinkling of spectators in the stands join in.

18-51 IST: We are moments away from live action. Yuzvendra Chahal needs three wickets to surpass Jasprit Bumrah as India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is.

India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal.

West Indies Playing XI: Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Rovman Powell, Kieron Pollard (c), Roston Chase, Fabian Allen, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Akeal Hosein, Sheldon Cottrell

Chahal and Bishnoi are going to be the spin duo for the day. Rohit says India is going with five batters, one all-rounder. Three seamers will play today, who can also bat.

TOSS TIME: Both captains – Pollard and Rohit – are in the middle for the toss. Rohit Sharma was won the toss and India will bowl first.

PITCH REPORT: It looks like a good wicket to bat on. Given the small dimensions of the ground – 62m and 68m square of the wicket – and the dew factor, teams will prefer chasing here.

18-10 IST: Ravi Bishnoi is set to make his international debut today. He was one of the draft picks for the new IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants before the auctions. The leg-spinner has 49 T20 wickets in 42 matches at a commendable economy rate of 6.63.

 

Other than the debutant, the spotlight will also be on Shreyas Iyer – who was named skipper of the Kolkata Knight Riders earlier today – and Ishan Kishan – who bagged a whopping Rs 15.25 crore in the IPL 2022 auctions on Saturday.

 

With six pacers in the squad, what combination will India go with today?

 

The countdown to the first T20I in the City of Joy has begun

 

MATCH PREVIEW

It’s an extended winter in Kolkata. Chilly winds have accompanied the onset of spring. At the Eden Gardens, which lies close to the river, trust the bowlers to have an edge as India meets Windies in the first T20I of the three-match series on Wednesday.

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There will be swing on offer, and looking at the amount of day-night cricket played in India, the players are used to the dew.

India captain Rohit Sharma wants to hand opportunities to the T20 World Cup probable players. And this series is the best platform to start the proceedings against a formidable opponent. West Indies is the breeding ground of big-hitters and all-rounders. FULL PREVIEW

-Wriddhaayan Bhattacharyya

IND VS WI PREDICTED XI

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj.

West Indies: Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Romario Shepherd, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Kieron Pollard (c), Rovman Powell, Jason Holder, Fabian Allen, Odean Smith, Akeal Hossain, Sheldon Cottrell.

IND VS WI DREAM11 FANTASY TEAM

Wicketkeepers: Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant

Batters: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav

All-rounders: Kieron Pollard, Jason Holder (vc)

Bowlers: Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, Odean Smith

Team Composition: IND 7-4 WI Credits Left: 0.0

In this episode of Matchpoint Paradox, Vijay Lokapally, Amol Karhadkar and Shayan Acharya join Lavanya Lakshminarayanan and recap the highs and lows of the IPL 2022 Mega Auction. What do you make of the squads after the auction? Tweet to us at @Sportstarweb and share your thoughts.

IND VS WI – HEAD TO HEAD IN T20Is

Last five matches

India won by 67 runs (Mumbai, December 11 2019)

West Indies won by eight wickets (Thiruvananthapuram, December 8 2019)

India won by six wickets (Hyderabad, December 6 2019)

India won by seven wickets (Providence, August 6, 2019)

India won by 22 runs (Lauderhill, August 4, 2019)

Overall

Played: 17; India won: 10; West Indies won: 6; NR: 1

THE SQUADS

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Deepak Hooda, Avesh Khan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Deepak Chahar, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Virat Kohli, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Siraj, Rishabh Pant (vc) (wk), Harshal Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Shardul Thakur, Suryakumar Yadav. West Indies: Kieron Pollard (c), Nicholas Pooran (vc), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Dominic Drakes, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Rovman Powell, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Hayden Walsh.

WHERE AND WHEN TO WATCH INDIA VS WEST INDIES, FIRST T20I LIVE?

India vs West Indies 1st T20I will be aired LIVE on the Star Sports Network at 7-00 PM IST. The match will also be live streamed on Disney+Hotstar.