Chennai: Shimron Hetmyer cracked a career-best 139 while Shai Hope scored an unbeaten 102 as the West Indies romped to a eight-wicket victory against India in the first One-Day International at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium here on Sunday.
Chasing a challenging 288 for a victory on a sluggish wicket, 22-year old Hetmyer took 106 balls for his sensational 139 which was studded with 11 fours and seven huge sixes. The left-hander was dropped on 106 by Shreyas Iyer off Deepak Chahar but most of the damage was already done by then.
Wicketkeeper batsman Hope gave Hetmyer excellent company with a patient 102 off 151 balls (7×4, 1×6), bringing up his hundred in 149 balls by hitting Chahar for a six and a four in the 47th over.
The pair shared a mammoth 218-run partnership for the second wicket. The Windies lost Sunil Ambris (9) early, trapped in front by Chahar who was the only bowler who looked good for India on a rare bad day in office for Virat Kohli’s men.
But once Hetmyer and Hope got together, there was no looking back for the tourists as the pair mixed caution with aggression and made India feel the need for a fourth bowler with allrounders Shivam Dube and Ravindra Jadeja going for plenty.
While Hetmyer played in his usual aggressive manner, hitting Ravindra Jadeja for 16 runs in the 22nd over, Hope held one end up and made sure they did not lose wickets. He got to his 50 in 92 balls as Hetmyer raced to his fifth century from just 85 deliveries.
In the 35th over, Iyer dropped him at long-on off Chahar and the destructive batsman made the team pay by smashing Jadeja for two consecutive sixes in the next over.
Hetmyer finally holed out to Iyer on the midwicket boundary off Mohammed Shami in the 39th over but with 58 more required from 11 overs, it was too easy in the end as Hope and Nicholas Pooran (29) joined hands for an unbroken 62-run stand to guide the team home with 13 balls to spare. West Indies scored 291/2 in 47.5 overs.
Earlier, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant slammed fluent half centuries as India’s middle order came to the party to help the hosts post 287/8.
Iyer (70; 88b; 5×4, 1×6) and Pant (71; 69b; 7×4, 1×6) shared a 114-run partnership for the fourth wicket to help India recover from a top-order collapse and post a challenging total on a slow wicket after they were asked to bat first.
India
Sharma c Pollard b Alzarri Joseph…36
Rahul c Hetmyer b Cottrell…………….6
Kohli b Cottrell……………………………..4
Iyer c Pollard b Alzarri Joseph………70
Pant c Hetmyer b Pollard…………….71
Jadhav c Pollard b Keemo Paul……40
Jadeja run out…………………………….21
Dube c Holder b Keemo Paul…………9
Chahar not out……………………………..7
Shami not out………………………………0
Extras: (b5, lb5, w11)………………….24
Total: (8 wkts; 50 overs)……………287
FoW: 21-1, 25-2, 80-3, 194-4, 210-5, 269-6, 269-7, 282-8
Bowling: Cottrell 10-3-46-2, Holder 8-0-45-0, Walsh 5-0-31-0, Paul 7-0-41-2, Joseph 9-1-45-2, Chase 7-0-42-0, Pollard 4-0-28-1.
West Indies
Hope not out…………………………….102
Ambris lbw b Chahar…………………….9
Hetmyer c Iyer b Shami……………..139
Pooran not out……………………………29
Extras: (lb4, nb1, w7)…………………12
Total: (2 wkts; 47.5 overs)…………291
FoW: 1-11, 2-229
Bowling: Chahar 10-1-48-1, Shami 9-1-57-1, Yadav 10-0-45-0, Dube 7.5-0-68-0, Jadhav 1-0-11-0, Jadeja 10-0-58-0.