Team India vs West Indies. (Pic source: Randy Brooks/AFP)
Ravichandran Ashwin picked up figures of 7/71, his best in an overseas Test innings, as team India thrashed West Indies by an innings and 141 runs to win the first Test match on Day 3 at Windsor Park in Roseau, Dominica. The 36-year-old offspinner ended the game with a bowling performance of 12/131 which also turned out to be his best returns in an away Test.
Talking about how the day panned out, youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal failed to smash a double century on debut as he got dismissed for 171. Virat Kohli scored 76 off 182 while Ravindra Jadeja remained unbeaten on 37 off 82. With India reaching a total of 421/5, skipper Rohit Sharma decided to declare the innings.
Trailing by 271 runs, the West Indies batting line-up failed miserably yet again as they struggled against the classy spin bowling of Ashwin. Openers Kraigg Brathwaite and Tagenarine Chanderpaul managed to score just seven apiece while Raymon Reifer and Jermaine Blackwood amassed 11 and five respectively.
Alick Athanaze was impressive again as he top-scored for his side with his innings of 28 off 44. But an Indian victory looked inevitable as Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja (2/38) finished off the formalities soon by bundling out the home side for 130. With this, the visitors took a 1-0 lead with the second Test set to be played at Port of Spain in Trinidad from the 20th. For his outstanding 171-run knock on debut, Jaiswal grabbed the Player of the Match award.
Meanwhile, here are some of the important stats and numbers from Day 3 of the 1st Test between West Indies and India:
7/71 – R Ashwin registered his best bowling figures of 7/71 in an away Test. Previously, he took 7/83 against the same opposition in North Sound, Antigua in the year 2016.
8 – Ashwin is now joint-top with Anil Kumble for the most ten-wicket haul (eight) in a Test match for India.
171 – Yashasvi Jaiswal recorded the third-highest individual score of 171 for India on debut in Tests. Shikhar Dhawan scored 187 against Australia in Mohali in 2013 while Rohit Sharma smacked 177 against the Windies in Kolkata the same year.
34 – Ashwin also equaled Rangana Herath at the fourth spot for the most five-wicket haul (34) by a spinner in Test cricket. Muthiah Muralitharan (67), Shane Warne (37), and Kumble (35) are in the top three positions.
23 – Ashwin has now taken the most match-winning wicket (23) in a Test match. He surpassed late Shane Warne’s tally of 22.
2002 – West Indies last defeated India in a Test match way back in the year 2002. Since 2006, they have played 21 matches with India which has resulted in 13 defeats and eight draws.
8 – Jaiswal became the eighth Indian to win the Player of the Match award on Test debut. Pravin Amra against South Africa in 1992, RP Singh against Pakistan in 2006, Ashwin against West Indies in 2011, Dhawan against Australia in 2013, Rohit against the Windies in 2013, Prithvi Shaw against West Indies in 2018, and Shreyas Iyer against New Zealand in 2021 are the other instances.
23 – With 23 victories, India have now won the third-most Test matches against a single team (West Indies). The Asian giants have won 22 each against New Zealand and Sri Lanka. They have won 32 and 31 matches against Australia and England respectively.
6 – Spinner Ashwin is now joint-top with Malcolm Marshall for picking up the most five-for (six) in India-West Indies Test matches.
12/131 – Ashwin registered the third-best bowling performance of 12/131 for India in an away Test. BS Chandrasekhar took 12/104 against Australia in Melbourne in 1977 while Irfan Pathan took 12/126 against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2005.