India vs West Indies: India captain Rohit Sharma defends Avesh Khan gamble in Windies defeat

02.08.2022 - 09:23 timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Rohit Sharma said he had no regrets about picking rookie seamer Avesh Khan ahead of veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar to bowl the final over against West Indies after their five-wicket loss in the second Twenty20 International on Monday.

West Indies' Obed McCoy claimed 6-17 as India were skittled out for 138 with two balls remaining in their innings. Tidy bowling brought India back into the contest, with West Indies needing 10 runs from the last over.

Bhuvneshwar, renowned for his death-overs mastery, still had two overs left but Rohit handed the ball to Avesh instead. Avesh, who made his India debut earlier this year, began with a no-ball and Odean Smith took a single off it.

Devon Thomas hit the next delivery, a free-hit, for a six and followed it with a four as West Indies prevailed with four balls remaining to level the five-match series 1-1.

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The preparations are on full swing for all the top cricket teams around the world ahead of the 2022 T20 World Cup. For teams like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, the August 27-September 11 Asia Cup will be a great opportunity to test their mettle against the best ahead of the showpiece event in Australia. India and Pakistan face each other in Asia Cup on August 28 and it will be the first time the two sides will face each other after the 2021 T20 World Cup.

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