- By James Kuanal
- Fri, 06 Dec 2019 08:52 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
New Delhi | Jagran Sports Desk: Wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal on Friday equalled Ravichandran Ashwin to take the most number of wickets for the men in blues while playing against West Indies in the first T20I held at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. Chahal, now has 52 wickets from 36 T20Is, i.e., in less number of appearances as compared to Ashwin's 46. The 29-year-old ended with figures of 36/2 in his four overs in the opening fixture dismissing Shimron Hetmyer and Kieron Pollard.
Lasith Malinga is the leading bowler in the T20I format with 106 wickets and the only bowler with three-figure mark. Though Chahal is fastest among Indian bowlers, he still ranks 25th among the highest wicket-takers in international cricket. India's pace spearhead Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 39 wickets in 41 matches is the second-fastest for team India.
Also Read: Ind vs WI, 1st T20I | Shimron Hetmyer hits maiden half-century, takes West Indies on top
He made his comeback in the three-match T20I series last month and impressed with his performances against South Africa. Chahal appeared alongside Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja among spinners in the opening fixture while Kuldeep Yadav remained on the bench.
As far as the match is concerned, West Indies won the toss and opted to bat first. The visitors scored 207/5 in their 20 overs as Shimron Hetmyer scored 56 runs to bring his maiden half-century while opening batsman Evin Lewis contributed 40 runs. Skipper Pollard and Brandon King added 37 runs and 31 runs each.
Later, Virat Kohli (unbeaten 94 runs) and KL Rahul's 62 runs ensured an easy eight-wicket win for India in the opening contest that was a run-fest for the batsman. The next T20I will be held at Thiruvananthapuram on December 8 (Sunday).
