India vs West Indies 4th Test Day 1 Cricket Highlights: Rain Forces Early Stumps on Day 1
Rain washed out the first day's play of the fourth Test between India and West Indies at Port of Spain on Thursday. The hosts were 62 for the loss of two wickets before rains. Catch highlights of India vs West Indies here
A victory at Port of Spain will be the second time India would have won three Tests away from home. Get highlights of Day 1 of the fourth Test between India vs West Indies here. (SCORECARD | INDIA vs WEST INDIES NEWS)
23:54 hrs IST: So the match has been officially called off for the day. The West Indies will be thankful to the rain gods for their timely rescue acts. On the other hand, India will be upset as they would have been eyeing putting further pressure on the hosts. That's all for today's coverage. Good night!
21:46 hrs IST: The match has been suspended due to rain, and ground staff has a lot of work to do. Stay with us for further updates. West Indies are currently 62/2 after 22 overs.
21:40 hrs IST: Meanwhile, the ground staff are waiting with the covers. Drizzling has begun.
21:31 hrs IST: Marlon Samuels has not been in best of his form in this series so far, managing just 151 runs in three Tests at an average of 25.17. He carefully ducks a bouncer for Ishant. West Indies are 61/2 after 20 overs.
21:24 hrs IST: After losing two quick wickets, West Indies have been sent on a backfoot. Marlon Samuels is on two while opener Brathwaite has been holding fort for the hosts.
21:15 hrs IST: Bravo departs! Ashwin exults in excitement as he is congratulated by his teammates. Bravo tried to defend the ball, which instead went past his bat and clipped the off-stump. West Indies are 48/2.
21:09 hrs IST: Bravo hits a delightful on-drive to open his account for four. Brings the 14th over to an end. West Indies are 41/1.
20:59 hrs IST: Ravichandran Ashwin brought into the attack. The off-spinner has had a brilliant series so far, snaring 16 wickets at an average of 23.25. After sending down five dot balls, Brathwaite hits a drive taking advantage of an open cover. A top shot to dispatch the ball to the ropes. Takes a single of the last ball of this over to keep strike.
20:54 hrs IST: Out!! Ishant Sharma gives India its first breakthrough. Johnson tried his best to defend, only to find the ball go up in the air to be caught by Rohit Sharma at short leg.
© AFP
20:50 hrs IST: Bhuvneshwar has received the first warning for running on the danger area. It could not have come at a more inappropriate time. End of the 11th over, West Indies are 31/0.
20:48 hrs IST: Bhuvneshwar to Brathwaite, and the latter sends the ball to the boundary with a superb cover drive. Presenting a full face of the bat, the batsman exuded confidence as he pumped his fist with Johnson.
20:46 hrs IST: Ten overs have gone and West Indies have been able to resist the fiery pace duo of Bhuvneshwar and Shami. Johnson took advantage of Shami's wrong footing and dispatched a short one for a boundary. The hosts are 27 for no loss.
20:38 hrs IST: Shami to Johnson. Bowls a short one, which the West Indian obliges with a superb pull and dispatch it to the boundary. Shami appeals for a leg before, and umpire Rod Tucker is not amused. End of the seventh over, the hosts are 20 for no loss.
20:35 hrs IST: Here's an interesting stat about Port of Spain. Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has a mind boggling average of 99.13 at this venue. The Little Master has scored 793 runs in five Tests, including two fifites and four hundreds.
20:28 hrs IST: Two consecutive maiden overs and India have succeeded in retaining the pressure on Windies batsmen. Taking into consideration that both Brathwaite and Johnson tempted into edging the ball towards the slips, Kohli has brought the fielders closer.
20:19 hrs IST: Bhuvneshwar has been pretty impressive in his spell so far, not letting both the batsmen breathe easy. End of the fifth over, West Indies are 14 without loss.
20:14 hrs IST: West Indies are comfortably placed at 7/0 after three overs. No need to hurry as they will be planning to bat the entire day.
20:05 hrs IST: West Indies have scored four runs in the first over without losing any wicket. Kraigg Braithwaite is on four and Leon Johnson is yet to open account.
20:03 hrs IST: Bhuvneshwar Kumar to open the bowling for India. The lanky pacer had played a crucial role in his team's victory in the third Test.
20:01 IST: Virat Kohli engaged in some serious brainstorming with his teammates in a huddle. India would be eyeing a victory in the third Test as well, so as to remain as the No 1 Test team.
19:51 hrs IST: Here are the playing XIs of both sides.
West Indies have won the toss and elected to bat first in the fourth Test. #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/5ZWUBYYHFe
- BCCI (@BCCI) August 18, 2016
India (Playing XI): Lokesh Rahul, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli(c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha(w), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma
West Indies (Playing XI): Kraigg Brathwaite, Leon Johnson, Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Jermaine Blackwood, Roston Chase, Shane Dowrich(w), Jason Holder(c), Devendra Bishoo, Miguel Cummins, Shannon Gabriel
19:50 hrs IST: Virat Kohli said that he would have bowled first had he won the toss. He said the No.1 ranking is a great incentive for the way how India have played Tests in the last couple of months.
19:48 hrs IST: For India, Ravindra Jadeja misses out and Cheteshwar Pujara comes back. Murali Vijay replaces Shikhar Dhawan
19:43 hrs IST: West Indies have won the toss and have chosen to bat in the final Test. Devendra Bishoo is back in the side, so no Alzarri Joseph.
19:00 hrs IST: A warm welcome to the fourth and final Test between India and West Indies from Port-of-Spain. The latest news is that the match has been delayed by 30 minutes due to a wet outfield. Inspection will be held at 19:30 hrs IST.
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Although skipper Virat Kohli doesn't believe in Test rankings, he will be happy to retain the No. 1 International Cricket Council Test ranking that Australia conceded to India after losing to Sri Lanka 3-0.
Scheduled to play 13 Tests at home, India could enjoy the No. 1 status for a long time. But Kohli's immediate focus will be in Port of Spain, a venue where West Indies enjoy a good record.
India have dominated the four-Test series, overcoming the loss of an entire day due to rain to win the third Test in St Lucia.
A day was also lost to bad weather in the second match but West Indies on that occasion rescued a draw.
India have shown a willingness to change their line-up to suit the conditions, using 15 players in the first three Tests to demonstrate their depth.
A Brilliant Spell
Pace bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar was among three players brought in for the third game and justified his inclusion with a brilliant match-winning spell, taking five for 33 in the first innings.
For the West Indies, Trinidad offers a chance to salvage some pride and show the cricket world their well-documented decline has been overstated.
Inconsistency has been a huge problem with most of their batsmen making a decent score here and there but also getting dismissed cheaply as often as not.
Marlon Samuels, for example, has made 51, 37 and 48 and has also gone for one, nought and 12.
Number three Darren Bravo, whose respectable Test average is almost 40, made only 41 runs in the first two Tests before finally enjoying a decent third game with 29 and 59.
Jermaine Blackwood, after a pair in the first Test, came good with 62 and 63 in the second Test only to fall cheaply again for 20 and one in the third match.
Can West Indies put their act together one last time in this rather one-sided series?