Watch: Ashwin survives bizarre run-out, West Indies bowler waits and keeps ball in hand during IND vs WI 1st T20

McCoy, who collected it cleanly, had the ball in his hand but he unexpectedly didn’t dislodge the bails, with Ashwin putting in a full-length dive and making his ground on Friday.

Ravichandran Ashwin is often associated with T20 innovations, be it his ‘retired-out’ decision invoking a new mode of legal dismissal or 'Mankading' triggering a massive debate over its appropriate spirit. The seasoned off-spinner, however, made headlines on Friday for a different reason altogether. Ashwin survived a bizarre run-out during the T20 series opener against West Indies, as Obed McCoy squandered a golden chance to disturb the stumps.

Ashwin during the 1st T20 against West Indies (Twitter)

It all happened in the 18th over when Dinesh Karthik hit the ball towards long-off for a double. Ashwin, running at the non-striker's end, had to dive to eventually make his ground. But there was more to the story. Had Obed McCoy effected the run-out, Ashwin would have fallen well short.

Bowler McCoy, who collected it cleanly, had the ball in his hand but he surprisingly didn’t dislodge the bails, with Ashwin still miles away from the crease.

Watch:

Karthik and Ashwin, who remained unbeaten on 13, shared an unbroken seventh-wicket partnership of 52 runs, as India scored a competitive 190-6. Skipper Rohit Sharma hit 64 in 44 balls at the top of the innings after India were put to bat first.

West Indies reached 122-8 in reply, with Shamarh Brooks being the team's top scorer with 20 off 15. India went on to extend their winning streak with a 68-run win in the first of five T20 Internationals against the Caribbean side.

Arshdeep Singh (2-24), Ravi Bishnoi (2-26) and Ashwin (2-22) all contributed wickets from four overs each, while senior pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar had bowling figures of 1-11 from his two overs.

While Rohit laid the foundation of an imposing total, it was Karthik who gave the Indian innings important late impetus with an unbeaten 41 off just 19 deliveries.

As many as 52 runs came off the last four overs as Karthik smashed four fours and two sixes to show his finishing prowess yet again. His blistering knock also earned him the man of the match award.

"The way we finished off the innings was great because we needed to hang in there and get more than just a par score," said Rohit after the match.

"We also want to keep on trying different things at various stages of the innings to improve our overall game."