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Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Ravi Rampaul party with crowd during India vs West Indies 1st ODI
These three were not the only Trinidad greats who were present in the stands on Friday. Legendary West Indies cricketer Brian Lara was there. The former captain in fact went inside the dressing room after the match to meet the Indian players and their head coach Rahul Dravid
Trinidad cricketers Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine and Ravi Rampaul were present at the Queen's Park Oval in Port of Spain to watch West Indies take on India in the first ODI on Friday. The West Indies greats reportedly partied with the fans in the stands while enjoying the proceedings. Pollard announced his retirement from international cricket in April this year while Rampaul and Narine haven't officially hung their boots yet. Narine last played for West Indies in a T20I against India in 2019. Right-arm pacer Rampaul, however, was a part of West Indies T20 World Cup squad last year.
These three were not the only Trinidad greats who were present in the stands on Friday. Legendary West Indies cricketer Brian Lara was there. The former captain in fact went inside the dressing room after the match to meet the Indian players and their head coach Rahul Dravid, against whom he played a lot of cricket during his playdays.
India put up 308-7 and West Indies' chase ended on a tense 305-6.
The home side needed 15 runs off the last over but the yorkers of medium-pacer Mohammed Siraj limited batters Romario Shepherd and Akeal Hossain to 11.
The series opener was closer than expected. India came from a series win in England, while West Indies was swept aside by visiting Bangladesh.
Both sides started well and finished slow.
A 117-run stand for the second wicket between opener Kyle Mayers and Shamarh Brooks gave West Indies the ideal launch.
Medium-pacer Shardul Thakur got Brooks to pull straight to a fielder on 46, and got Mayers in his next over giving a thick edge behind. Mayers hit 75 off 68 balls.
West Indies needed 90 runs off the last 10 overs and Brandon King kept their hopes alive with his third ODI fifty.
But the required run rate was climbing.
Shepherd, 38 not out off 25 balls, and Hossain, 32 not out off 32, just hit enough extra runs to make the ending suspenseful, but not enough in the face of expert bowling by legspinner Yuzvendral Chahal and Siraj, who both took two wickets.
India captain Shikhar Dhawan and Shubman Gill, the test opener playing only his fourth ODI, gave their side a start that indicated a 350 total.
Gill reached his first fifty in ODIs, in 36 balls, followed by Dhawan in 53 balls. They'd gathered 119 together smoothly when Gill ran himself out by underestimating the quickness of West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran. Gill made 64 from 53 balls.
The scoring slowed down but Dhawan and Shreyas Iyer took India past 200 and Dhawan was on the brink of his 18th ODI century when he slashed straight to a fielder. He was on 97 from 99 balls, after 10 boundaries and three sixes.
(With agency inputs)
