West Indies vs India 2nd T20I Full Commentary

We are back for the chase. The umpires are back out in the middle, and Shivam Dube can be seen leading the talks as the Indian players huddle up before taking to the field. Kamil Pooran and skipper Shai Hope are set to open the innings for West Indies. Interestingly, it will be Mayank Yadav and not Arshdeep Singh who will get proceedings underway with the ball. Let's go...

... The Run Chase ...

Game over already? India have never failed to defend a score of 225 runs or more in a T20I game, and are well placed to keep that record intact. However, the dew factor will be key, and if a couple of West Indies batters really get on a roll, you never know what might happen. Overall, it should be an exciting run chase, so stay tuned - it's coming right up.

Chase saves West Indies' blemishes, almost - On flat Indian decks, you need to be clever with the ball, but West Indies didn't start on the front foot. Akeal Hosein was given the tough task of bowling 3 overs in the Powerplay and was taken to the cleaners. A frontline seamer like Shamar Joseph was held back and when he did come on, his lengths were all over the place. Gudakesh Motie also struggled with his left-arm spin and it was only Roston Chase who showed his experience and varied his pace really well, bowling a brilliant spell which included 3 wickets. Shamar Springer did get a wicket but was expensive at the death and Romario Shepherd walked off the field with a niggle as the visitors failed to stem the flow of the boundaries, and ended up conceding a huge total.

A word with Sanju Samson - Samson says they got to bat on a centre wicket yesterday, which gave them an understanding of how the surface behaves, particularly the skid and the lack of bounce. Regardless of the conditions, he wanted to go for his shots, and things came off nicely for him. He says he wants to continue batting with a positive frame of mind, without premeditating. The focus is on watching the ball and backing his instincts. Adds that, as a professional cricketer representing India, all he can do is prepare well, train hard and take care of everything within his control. The result, he acknowledges, is not in his hands, but there is only one way to approach it, which is to put the team first and provide a strong start.

If Abhishek won't, then Sanju will - The backbone of India's T20 prowess in recent times, especially at home, has been the aggressive nature of their batting in the Powerplay. They aren't afraid to lose a wicket or two, and after a string of low scores, Sanju Samson showed the kind of form that took India to a successive T20 World Cup win much earlier this year as he piled on 82 runs off 41 balls. The leading T20I batter of 2026, Ishan Kishan, again played a solid knock, but when he got out, there was a quiet phase with the bat as well, which didn't last long. Then at the death, the captain and vice-captain got together to blow the Windies bowlers out of the game. Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma added 83 runs in just 33 balls, helping India almost breach the 250-run mark.

Carnage in Ranchi - Given how deep India bat, and how many batters are actually in form, we were bound to see fireworks out in the middle. The presence of dew right from the start and some sloppy bowling from West Indies only added to India's charge, and the hosts have piled on 249 runs - their highest T20I score against West Indies.

Naman Dhir walks out to face the final delivery of the innings.

There is a slight hold-up in the play as Shai Hope has a word with Shamar Springer, and Shamar Joseph has joined the conversation as well.

Before the start of the over, an overrate penalty had been imposed on West Indies. This means there will be only four fielders outside the inner ring.

A half-hearted appeal for LBW, which isn't given, but Shai Hope does take the review. The third umpire has a look, and there's nothing on UltraEdge, with Ball Tracking showing the ball to be missing leg stump comfortably. Not Out!

Shamar Joseph is back into the attack to bowl the crucial 19th over.

On to Indore - 501 runs were scored on the night, the highest match aggregate in a T20I in India. It goes past the previous best of 499, set in the T20 World Cup semi-final between India and England in Mumbai earlier this year. Only the 517 runs in South Africa’s chase against the West Indies at Centurion in 2023 stand above it in all T20Is. Don’t be surprised if the history books are rewritten again by the end of the series, with the next three venues all carrying a reputation for big scores - Indore, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. With the series tied up, the teams travel to Indore for the third T20I on Sunday, 11th October. The match will begin at 1.30 pm GMT (7 pm IST), but as always, you can join us early for the build-up. See you then, cheers!

PLAYER OF THE MATCH - The skipper of West Indies, Shai Hope has been given the award for his match-winning knock of 102 not out from 45 balls at a strike rate of 226.66. Hope says that with those early wickets, he thought it was going to be a tough chase, but on these kinds of wickets, there's always a chance. He then goes on to credit Sherfane Rutherford for providing the spark they needed. Hope then goes on to say that overall they need to bat better in partnerships, but he just tried to admire what Rutherford was doing with the bat. On Roston Chase, Hope says that he did a fantastic job and he made their job easier. On the boundaries being on the bigger side, Hope says that yes, they were bigger when compared to some other Indian grounds, but feels that the ball was flying here. On his record in India, Hope says that it is tough to assess whether this is his best streak, but feels that he's mentally fit and ready to get going.

The skipper of India - Shreyas Iyer says it is difficult to put a number on what would constitute a safe total, given the dew factor. With West Indies chasing down 250 with such ease, he feels it is hard to say what score would have been enough. Mentions that the margin for error on this surface was very small, and any lapse in execution was punished. Iyer gives credit to the West Indies batters for the exceptional way they played. On Samson and Mayank, he says both were phenomenal in their respective departments. He adds that the team expects performances like these from Sanju and Abhishek, who have consistently taken responsibility and set the pace at the top. He also praises Mayank for picking up three crucial wickets, which helped India establish some rhythm early on.

Time for the presentation ceremony...

Let's hear from Sherfane Rutherford - Rutherford says that his mindset was clear. They knew there were runs to be made despite those early wickets, and intent doesn't necessarily mean being reckless. On this year being a standout in his T20 career, he says that he wasn't aware and says that the things going on behind the scenes are turning into results on the field. He also mentions that they knew from the start that this was going to be a good wicket, and things did get away with the ball in the last five overs, but feels that when bowlers are having a day off, it is important for the batters to help out. On his stand with the skipper, Sherfane says that it was a crucial one and goes on to laud the way Hope plays. Adds that Hope is somewhat of an inspiration and hopes he continues in the same way and gets the credit he deserves.

Late blitz lifted India - It was a no-brainer for Shai Hope to bowl first, given that the dew had started to settle even before a ball was bowled. Dropped on 6 and 42, Sanju Samson got the luck he needed to snap his string of low scores. His 82 set India up nicely, but West Indies managed to wrest back some control through the middle phase. The wheels came off towards the back end, though, as Shreyas Iyer and his deputy, Tilak Varma, took the bull by the horns to propel India to their highest T20I total against West Indies. Roston Chase was the pick of the bowlers across both sides, finishing with figures of 3/24 from his 4 overs on a night when no other bowler went at less than 10 runs an over.

A record chase in Ranchi - The two sides traded blows in the Powerplay. After a tough night in Lucknow, Mayank Yadav roared back with three wickets inside the first 6 overs, but the West Indies still managed 72 runs in that stretch. Then came a 120-run stand that put them ahead of the curve, with Sherfane Rutherford the dominant man in the partnership. Dropped on 38, Rutherford made India pay dearly, blitzing his way through the middle overs with Hope at the other end complementing him nicely. Rutherford eventually fell for 84, but Hope and Romario Shepherd made sure his work did not go to waste, powering the Windies home with 9 balls to spare, with Hope also bringing up his hundred.

Windies do it again - Days after chasing down 352 in New Chandigarh, their highest ODI chase, the West Indies have gone one better in Ranchi tonight with the highest successful chase in their T20I history. Shai Hope was at the heart of it then, and he was again tonight, though Sherfane Rutherford was the early aggressor before Hope took over. Only South Africa’s 259 against the West Indies in 2023 stands above it in the format. In dewy conditions, India needed that cushion of extra runs, and at the halfway mark they must have thought they had enough. But the West Indies’ batting might was on full show tonight, and the difference came down to the number of sixes, with India’s 13 against Windies’ 20.

West Indies are almost home. Axar Patel has been tossed the ball.

Arshdeep Singh comes back for his final over.

Shreyas Iyer and Sanju Samson walk up to Kuldeep Yadav for a quick word.