Navdeep Saini made an instant impact on his Twenty20 International (T20I) debut, returning with figures of three for 17 as India beat the West Indies by four wickets in the opening T20I of the three-match series in Lauderhill, Florida on Saturday. A fine bowling performance, led by Navdeep Saini helped India restrict the West Indies to 95 for nine in 20 overs. India didn’t have it all their way in the chase, huffing and puffing their way to the 96-run target with 16 balls to spare. However, despite the underwhelming performance with the bat, captain Virat Kohli was a content man, hailing Navdeep Saini as “a rarity with his raw pace”.
“Navdeep is a rarity with his raw pace,” said Kohli in appreciation of his debutant’s impressive effort.
“We can only hope he kicks on from there. It wasn’t the best pitch because of all the weather around. Everyone did a great job to get the match underway on time.”
On a pitch where all batsmen struggled to play their shots, the West Indies were restricted to 95 for nine batting first.
India’s line-up found the conditions equally challenging but the depth of their batting saw them through to 98 for six with 16 deliveries to spare.
