India opener Prithvi Shaw had a close shave in the second innings on Sunday when a delivery from Jason Holder hit him on the arm as he ducked right in front of the wicket. While replays showed that the ball was clipping the bails, Shaw was saved as umpire Ian Gould adjudged it not out. In a sporting move, Gould was seen apologising to Holder when replays showed the ball would have clipped the bails. The DRS decision went against West Indies as the on-field umpire had given it not out.
Shaw has had a really good time as he ended up being named Man of the Series for hitting a century in the first Test before ending up with scores of 70 and unbeaten 33 in the second Test in Hyderabad. Speaking after the game, Shaw said: “It was a happy moment for me and finishing the game for India means a lot for me. It is my first series, winning 2-0 and winning the Man of the Series makes it all the more special. Everyone is like a family; there is no senior or junior. It is a great journey and I am looking forward to a lot of it. I don’t know what is happening next, I just want to enjoy this moment.”
{{/usCountry}}Shaw has had a really good time as he ended up being named Man of the Series for hitting a century in the first Test before ending up with scores of 70 and unbeaten 33 in the second Test in Hyderabad. Speaking after the game, Shaw said: “It was a happy moment for me and finishing the game for India means a lot for me. It is my first series, winning 2-0 and winning the Man of the Series makes it all the more special. Everyone is like a family; there is no senior or junior. It is a great journey and I am looking forward to a lot of it. I don’t know what is happening next, I just want to enjoy this moment.”
{{/usCountry}}If you had asked Prithvi Shaw at the beginning of the series what he wanted to gain out of it, he would have settled for a lot less than he actually ended up getting.
The diminutive right hander who became only the 15th Indian to score a Test century on debut was also named the man of the series against West Indies. The 18-year-old scored 237 runs in the series and currently has an average of 118.5 in Tests.
Shaw has also joined an elite and select group of players who have won the Man of the series award in their very first series. Here is a list of men who have had the honour of winning the award in the first series they played for their country:
Sourav Ganguly vs Eng, 1996
Jacques Rudolph vs Ban, 2003
Stuart Clark vs SA, 2006
Ajantha Mendis vs Ind, 2008
Ravichandran Ashwin vs WI, 2011
Vernon Philander vs Aus, 2011
James Pattinson vs NZ, 2011
Rohit Sharma vs WI, 2013
Mehedi Hasan vs Eng, 2016
Prithvi Shaw v WI, 2018
Incidentally, On the last three occasions that India have played the men from the Caribbean, a debutant has gone on to claim the Man of the Series award. Previously, Ravichandran Ashwin won in 2011 and Rohit Sharma won the award in 2013.