THE FIGHTBACK

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

Venue: Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica [30 July-3 August, 2016].

In the summer of 2016, the Indian Cricket Team toured the West Indies to play 4 Test Matches and 2 T20 Internationals. The visitors won the first test comfortably, and the action of the series now reached the iconic venue of Sabina Park. The Windies won the toss and decided to bat first in a game which they couldn't afford to lose. However, the visitors continued their form from Antigua and bowled out the hosts for just 196 runs in the first innings. Ravichandran Ashwin was once again the leading wicket-taker for the Indians as he picked up yet another fifer. Apart from Ashwin, Ishant and Shami picked a couple of wickets each as the Windies struggled yet again in front of the Indian bowling attack.

In response, the Indians declared a massive score of 500/9. KL Rahul scored a magnificent 158 as Indians were able to secure a massive first-innings lead of 304 runs. Apart from Rahul, Rahane too scored an unbeaten 108 as the Windies struggled for wickets. However, it is interesting to note that Roston Chase did give some competition to Indian batsmen, as he was able to pick up 5 of the 9 wickets, which included the prized wickets of Dhawan and Kohli. Moreover, he was also involved in the run-out of Pujara, so his contribution was significant for the hosts.

However, a deficit of 304 was never going to be easy for any team in any condition. To make matters worse, the Windies' top order collapsed in no time, with Indians looking at yet another innings win. But this is when Roston Chase surprised everyone, this time with the bat, as he scored an unbeaten 137 and helped Windies secure a draw from nowhere. Chase batted for around 6 hours and stitched valuable partnerships with Dowrich and Holder as the Windies inched closer to the 400-run mark [388/6 to be precise].

After 104 overs of West Indies batting, the test match ended in a draw. No one could believe what they had just witnessed. After all, the hosts have pulled off a miraculous fightback before a mighty Indian side. Roston Chase was awarded the man of the match award for his all-round performance as the hosts were still alive in the series.

To watch the Highlights of the Test Match, Click Here.

To read about what happened in the First Test, Click Here.