Ravichandran Ashwin snares another seven as India thrash West Indies in first Test

The longevity of the first Test always depended on how long the Indian first innings lasted. So, once skipper Rohit Sharma decided, just over 40 minutes after lunch on the third day, that a lead of 271 was enough, it was only a question of how long the West Indies would survive. The answer: not very long, just over the length of an ODI innings. Spin was introduced in the fifth over of the hosts’ second essay, and Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja shared the first four wickets – interestingly, the off-spinner getting two right-handers, and the left-arm spinner two left-handers – as the West Indies were reduced to 58/5 inside 30 overs.And when Ashwin had the impressive debutant Alick Athanaze caught at short leg, the writing on the wall said that the Test won’t see a fourth day. A victory margin of an innings and 141 runs points to a one-horse race.
When the dust settled, Ashwin, who couldn’t find a place in the playing XI for last month’s World Test Championship (WTC) final, had added 7/71 to his five in the first innings. It became so routine for him that the master off-spinner even stopped celebrating his wickets.
The hosts’ totals of 150 and 130 were comfortably outscored debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal, telling the tale of India’s domination in Dominica.
The West Indies are no longer one of the stronger sides in international cricket – as their recent debacles in white-ball formats would testify. This Test series was an opportunity to get some positive feeling back in Caribbean cricket, and it was not just up to the players out in the middle.
Whoever was responsible for dishing out a pitch that made the Indian spinners feel right at home disadvantaged the home side to a great extent. The surface was akin to what one would expect in Delhi or Mumbai, prepared to make quick work of visiting teams. Rahkeem Cornwall and Jamal Warrican weren’t equipped to make full use of the facilities. A more pace-friendly wicket would have brought the likes of Kemar Roach, Jason Holder and Alzarri Joseph into play to a larger extent, and possibly could have even allowed the inclusion of Shannon Gabriel.
As it turned out, the West Indian batsmen were nowhere good enough to deal with one of the most potent double spin acts in the hory of the game. All but eight of the 50.3 overs in the second innings were bowled the two Indian spinners, and 17 of the 20 West Indian wickets in the game were shared Ashwin and Jadeja.
King becomes a commoner
Earlier, Virat Kohli struggled through an innings that made him look like an ordinary mortal. It had little to do with the challenge posed the West Indian bowlers. There was not much in the form of sustained excellence in either pace or spin, but Kohli was given some anxious moments nevertheless.
Starting the third day on 36, he could have been sent back for 40 had Kraigg Brathwaite held on to a very catchable uppish drive off Warrican at short cover. He could have been out in the first over after lunch had wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva held on to a regulation outside edge when Kohli went for a loose drive outside off-stump. He was on 72 then.
At that moment, one would have felt that the elements were conspiring to allow Kohli to get to his second hundred in three Tests after a long century drought. But off-spinner Cornwall, allowed to bowl after a long period off the field due to a chest infection, got one to turn and bounce more than Kohli expected. He could have let it go or take it on the body, but he tried to turn it round the corner and leg-slip took a sharp catch to send the former skipper back for 76.

Kohli reminding us all that it’s Friday night, after all!@imVkohli .
.#INDvWIonFanCode #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/mPLidCSKW2
— FanCode (@FanCode) July 14, 2023
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
The pitch at Windsor Park has been slow with some uneven bounce on offer, and Kohli often struggled to get the middle of the bat when the likes of Roach, Jason Holder or Alzarri Joseph dug it in short.
For a batsman known for his sparkling stroke-play, managing just five boundaries in 182 balls shows that the modern batting great didn’t have things all his way. The slow pitch and slow outfield were in stark contrast to what was on offer in the WTC final at The Oval. Three of those fours came in 10 deliveries he faced as Kohli took advantage of some loose stuff from the West Indian part-time bowlers, but otherwise it was an innings of toil.
While there may have been a temptation to break the shackles and be a little more aggressive, it spoke of Kohli’s maturity that he recognised that it was not quite happening for him and his form and the match situation demanded that he grind an innings out and push the West Indies further out of the game.
In the bigger picture, with Joe Root and Steve Smith getting Test hundreds over the last month, they have gone well past Kohli in the century count, to an extent that some have even questioned if he still belonged to the so-called ‘Fab Four’ group, at least in Test cricket.
But the grit and determination that Kohli showed without looking, at any time, to be in prime batting rhythm, proved that there are still some runs left in him.
One Mumbaikar who faltered
Jaiswal looked all set to get to a double hundred on Test debut, such was his application and control on a pitch that was not a featherbed any means. Neither pace nor spin fazed him, and one felt it would be only a batting error or loss of patience that could prove to be his downfall.

A debut to remember 🫡@ybj_19
.
.#INDvWIonFanCode #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/YGOhRAfSAh
— FanCode (@FanCode) July 14, 2023
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
An on-drive off Holder and an upper-cut off Joseph showed that pace wasn’t troubling him, while a straight six off left-arm spinner Warrican indicated that he was willing to get a move on.
Maybe, that’s what prompted a loose back-foot push off Joseph that only managed a thin outside edge to da Silva behind the stumps. The left-hander departed 29 short of 200, having faced no fewer than 387 deliveries.
As the 21-year-old departed to warm applause from the Indian dressing room and the stands, he was replaced fellow Mumbaikar Ajinkya Rahane, probably at the other end of his Test career.
Almost the forgotten man of Indian cricket till a few months ago, some stellar performances in the Indian Premier League got him back in the reckoning. The veteran made a comeback in the WTC final and was India’s most fluent batsman against the Aussies. But making him vice-captain for the Caribbean sojourn raised a few eyebrows as it was felt many as a step backwards when the need of the hour was regeneration and blooding in a few youngsters.
Friday’s innings was a vital one for Rahane, but he would be kicking himself for his soft dismissal for just three. The first delivery of a Roach spell gripped the surface and bounced a bit more than Rahane expected, and he just spooned an easy catch to short cover.
It makes the second Test at Port of Spain all the more important for his Test future.
Kishan plays against nature
Jaiswal faced 16 deliveries before making his first Test run, and went on to score 171. Fellow debutant Ishan Kishan was brought into the side to provide some more batting muscle and flamboyance. So, it was puzzling to see the wicketkeeper-batsman negotiating 19 deliveries without playing a shot in anger.
It clearly upset skipper Rohit Sharma, who gestured from the dressing room to know what was happening. Kishan promptly swivelled on his back-foot next ball and turned one to the onside to get his first run in Test cricket, and Rohit immediately declared the innings at 421/5.