New Delhi: Mahendra Singh Dhoni produced yet another glittering performance with the bat as India took an unassailable 2-0 lead over host nation West Indies at Antigua. An impressed Virat Kohli felt Dhoni stepped in when the team was in dire need of runs to put forth a good total.
Put to bat first, India went two down with the first ten overs with in-form opener Shikhar Dhawan registering his first ever single-digit score in nine innings. Yuvraj Singh combined with Ajinkya Rahane, taking India to 100-run mark but the southpaw was dismissed right after.
Indian innings then witnessed the entry of Dhoni, who though started off things slowly, combined with Rahane who notched up 72 off 112 deliveries as India recovered from a dicey start. Dhoni's match-winning knock of 78 runs off 79 deliveries, combined with some blistering boundaries and sixes, helped India post a total of 251 runs.
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With this ravishing performance of his, the Ranchi-based cricketer became the second highest run-getter as a wicketkeeper in ODI history with 9442 runs from 294 matches.
As for skipper Virat Kohli, he seemed quite impressed with the senior cricketer as he showered praise on the 35-year-old. "When we needed the runs, MS again finished the innings along with Kedar," he said.
"Ajinkya batted well and Yuvi's 40-odd (39) were really important runs. MS at the end along with Kedar finished it really well. We thought 250 was a very competitive total," he added.
The bowlers too answered back in style. The 252-run target, probably not big for a cricketing nation like India, was defended splendidly by the bowlers. Umesh Yadav combined with Hardik Pandya to remove top order as the offie Ravichandran Ashwin and chinaman Kuldeep Yadav scalped three wickets each to demolish the middle order.
Jason Mohammed and Rovman Powell did provide some hope to the faltering innings of the Windies with their 54-runs sixth partnership at the sixth wicket, but eventually failed as the host bundled out for mere 158 runs.
Talking about the team performance, Kohli felt it was a clinical performance by his teammates.
"I think it was a clinical performance again. Early on there was quite a bit of moisture, it was a good toss to win, and they bowled really well," he said.
"It was a good batting effort to get us to 250. The wicket played much better in the second innings. The bowlers created pressure and got breakthroughs at the right moments. It's about putting your hand up at the right time, its about how many people can stand up and put in those performances," added the 28-year-old.
The skipper also hinted at making some minor changes in the squad for the forthcoming match. "We'll surely look into [making changes]. We have quite a few players who haven't had a game in a while," he said.
India will next play on July 2, at the same venue.
