India routs West Indies to win 1st cricket test, appoints Shubman Gill as ODI captain

Audio By Carbonatix

AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — Ravindra Jadeja took 4-54 as India wrapped up the first test against West Indies by an innings and 140 runs on day three at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday.

Kuldeep Yadav also picked 2-23, while Mohammed Siraj took 3-31 in 11 overs, as West Indies was bowled out for 146 runs (45.1 overs) in the second innings.

The visitors had scored 162 runs in the first innings. In reply, India had declared its first innings at 448-5 with a lead of 286 runs.

India had three centurions in its first innings — Lokesh Rahul (100), Dhruv Jurel (125) and Jadeja (104 not out).

The second match in the two-test series begins Oct. 10 in New Delhi.

Post lunch on day three, West Indies had one good partnership to start the second session. Justin Greaves and Alick Athanaze put on 46 off 87 balls for the sixth wicket.

Athanaze top-scored with 38 off 74 balls with three fours. He was the first to go post lunch — a fine return catch by Washington Sundar (1-18).

West Indies slipped to 98-8 as Siraj trapped Greaves lbw for 25 and then had Jomel Warrican was out caught for a duck.

Jayden Seales delayed the inevitable with 22 off 12 balls, with two sixes, pushing the score past 100.

Jadeja and Yadav then wrapped up proceedings before the tea break.

Earlier, West Indies was down to 66-5 at lunch after India declared its first innings overnight.

Jadeja picked up 3-30 in the morning session to leave West Indies reeling in 27 overs by lunch.

West Indies’ opening stand lasted only 7.2 overs before Siraj struck to dismiss Tagenarine Chanderpaul for 8. Nitish Reddy took a stunning catch at square leg to dismiss the opener.

Jadeja was brought into the attack early, and he dismissed John Campbell for 14 and West Indies was down to 24-2 in 10.1 overs. It shortly became 34-3 and 35-4 — Jadeja had Brandon King caught at slip for 5. Then, Yadav bowled skipper Roston Chase for 1.

Vice-captain Jadeja was named player of the match.

“I have worked hard on my batting. I had been batting lower at eight or nine, but now I bat at number six. So there is no need to rush and I take my time,” he said.

West Indies has not beaten India in 26 tests — home or away — dating to 2002. It has lost four of the last five tests in India by an innings’ margin and lost the fifth by 10 wickets (2018).

It is the first time in 15 years that India has played a home test without Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin. The trio retired over the past season — their previous appearance on home soil against New Zealand last October was a stunning 3-0 loss for India.

Shubman Gill has been appointed India’s new ODI skipper, replacing Sharma, and will lead the team in the upcoming three-match series in Australia starting Oct. 19. There will also be five T20s.

Sharma returns as a batter, along with Kohli, but Gill takes over the reins with an eye on the 2027 Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

Sharma and Kohli return to the Indian fold for the first time since the Champions Trophy victory in March. The star duo had retired from tests ahead of the Indian tour to England, wherein Gill was named test skipper and led with 754 runs in five tests as the series ended 2-2.

Gill is now India’s test and ODI skipper, and is vice-captain to Suryakumar Yadav in T20s.

Sharma had been India’s ODI captain since December 2021. He led in 56 ODIs with 42 wins and 12 losses. He also led India to the 2023 Cricket World Cup final, losing to Australia in the final at Ahmedabad.

India will play three ODIs in Australia — Perth (Oct. 19), Adelaide (Oct. 23) and Sydney (Oct. 25). It will then play five T20s: Canberra (Oct. 29), Melbourne (Oct. 31), Hobart (Nov. 2), Gold Coast (Nov. 6) and Brisbane (Nov. 8).

BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar said it's “practically impossible to have three different captains” for three formats.

“Obviously, at some stage, you have to start looking at where the next World Cup will be,” he said. “ODI is also a format that is played the least now. So you don’t get that many games to actually give the next (captain), that much time to prepare himself or to plan.”

Calling it a “difficult decision,” Agarkar noted that Sharma and Kohli have still been picked.

"They just have to keep scoring runs, what they have been doing for so long. They are still leaders in this dressing room.”

___

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket