Harshal Patel needed to defend 11 off the last two balls in second ODI of the ongoing three-match T20I series against the West Indies, on Friday night at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. He conceded just two to help India take an unassailable 2-0 lead.
West Indies needed 187 to win. Rovman Powell (68* off 36) and Nicholas Pooran's (62 off 41) added 100 for the third wicket, in just 60 balls, to take them close. In fact, they needed just 29 off the last two overs, with seven wickets in hand. Then Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled a brilliant over, conceding only four runs and sending Pooran back.
Harshal brought the equation to 23 from four balls. Powell hit two sixes, off the third and fourth balls, but could not finish things off, and India snatched away a eight-run win.
The bowlers struggled with a wet ball on a flat wicket throughout the game. Under testing circumstances, the two Indian leg spinners, Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravi Bishnoi did reasonably well, returning 8-0-61-2 between them. A slowish start by the West Indies openers also helped India's cause. However, in the middle overs, the dynamic West Indian power hitters came to the forefront.
In the first half of the match, West Indies captain skipper Kieron Pollard won the toss and asked India to bat. India began on a sedate note, as Ishan Kishan fell early. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli added 46 as Kohli went on to score his 30th fifty in the format.
However, the West Indies spinners began to choke the run rate after the Powerplay. India struggled, and lost Rohit and Suryakumar Yadav in quick succession. Kohli (52) then became Roston Chase's third wicket. But a brisk 76-run stand between Rishabh Pant (52* off 28) and Venkatesh Iyer (33 off 18) provided the necessary finishing touch to the innings as India finish ended with a competitive 186/5.
The final match of the series will be played on Sunday, February 20 at the same venue.
India 186/5 in 20 overs (Rishabh Pant 52*; Roston Chase 3-25) beat West Indies 178/3 in 20 overs (Rovman Powell 68*; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 1-29) by 8 runs. Player of the match: Rishabh Pant.