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'Ashwin promoted up the order has played his role well'

Skipper Virat Kohli's brilliant hundred on Day 1 ensured India got themselves up after a sluggish start. On a pitch that had no hidden dangers the Indians seemed so lethargic in the pre-lunch session that it was hard to comprehend that it's a team that goes by the word aggression. There was simply none of that as both Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara batted as if the pitch was going to explode any moment. Fortunately Dhawan came to life just before the lunch interval and played some sparkling shots to get the board moving.

Jason Holder would struggle to find a place as an opening bowler in most teams of the world but here he is the captain of the West Indies team. Shannon Gabriel has a bit of pace about him but after a couple of overs became pretty predictable. Royston Chase, the off spinner is steady at best. Devendra Bishoo was the one to watch out for. He bowled a fine line and was accurate most of the time. He was brought on only after lunch by skipper Holder and even after he got the wicket of Pujara in his first over was not given the kind of spells that a leggie is looking for. He then got Dhawan out just before the tea break and Ajinkya Rahane who will be kicking himself for the manner of his dismissal to a rank long hop.

Kohli seemed to be batting on another pitch altogether. Not once did he look in trouble and the century was as certain as day follows night. What he did was to galvanise Dhawan into running the extra run and that energy benefitted the left-hander. One can understand Dhawan's cautiousness since every time some other batsman scores runs his is the place that others say is in danger. So he didn't take any chances and looked solid as he worked hard for his runs. It was only after his captain joined him that he broke free of the self imposed shackles and batted like the Dhawan we all know and admire. He was unlucky to miss out on a hundred but he had played his part and given the team the steadiness with Pujara and then the momentum in his partnership with the skipper.

Ashwin promoted up the order has played his role well giving more of the strike to his skipper. The second new ball is due and will surely be taken by the West Indies first thing but the way Kohli has been batting it could only accelerate the scoring for the Indians. The Indians will be very happy with the way the day ended as they had opted to bat first after winning the toss. They are in a good position to pressure the home team and with just a hint of turn towards the end of the day's play the Indian spinners could well have as decisive a say with the ball as their skipper has had with the bat.

Source: PMG



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