New Delhi: Skipper Shubman Gill remained unbeaten on a glittering 75, while Yashasvi Jaiswal made 175 as India added 109 runs in the morning session on day two and reach 427/4 in 116 overs at lunch in the second and final Test against West Indies at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday.
Jaiswal, who resumed his knock on 173, could add only two runs before being run-out in the second over of the day. Gill, resuming from 20 off 67 balls, was more proactive than his time at the crease on Friday, and brought out a flurry of wonderful shots to bring up his fifty off 95 balls.
Nitish Kumar Reddy, promoted up the order, looked promising and was dropped on 20, but failed to capitalise on promotion to number five, falling for 43. With Gill and Dhruv Jurel (seven not out) at the crease, India will aim to breach 500-run mark and pile more misery on West Indies.
The day began with a heartbreak for India as Jaiswal’s bid for a third Test double hundred ended in a weird run-out. After driving a full ball to mid-off, Jaiswal took off for a quick single, but Gill had said no to that call. But by then, Tagenarine Chanderpaul fired a direct hit to the keeper’s end, and though Jaiswal made a desperate turn after being more than halfway down the pitch, keeper Tevin Imlach disturbed the stumps swiftly.
Reddy, promoted with an aim by the Indian team management to get some game time, survived a close lbw call on the second ball he faced off Jayden Seales, before square driving off him for four.
Reddy had some luck again when he went hard on a drive and went just past second slip for four, even as Gill found boundaries easily via flicks, drives, and slashes, before bringing up his fifty with a superbly timed flick through mid-wicket for four off Seales.
Luck was yet again on Reddy’s side when Philip dropped his catch at mid-off off Jomel Warrican’s bowling, giving him a reprieve on 20. Reddy made up for his previous attempts of not going big against spinners by launching Warrican for two sixes and a four.
A calm Gill got huge cheers from a handy crowd by leaning into a half-volley from Greaves and driving through wide of mid-off for four, before thrashing him through the gap at extra cover for another boundary.
But Reddy fell seven runs short of his fifty when he looked to clear Warrican with a slog sweep, but holed out to long-on. With Gill and Jurel looking solid, India won yet another session and will hope to bat for long before all eyes turn towards a declaration call from the hosts’.
Brief Scores: India 427/4 in 116 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 175, B Sai Sudharsan 87; Jomel Warrican 3-83) against West Indies
(IANS)
