India vs West Indies: We need batters to take more responsibility, says Hardik Pandya after second T20I loss

For a second T20I running, West Indies edged India in a close contest and took a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. In the second fixture, Windies triumphed by two wickets on the back of Nicholas Pooran’s exploits. Batting first, India put together 152 runs on the board with Tilak Verma scoring a fifty in just his second appearance. In reply, West Indies chased down the total with seven balls to spare. India captain Hardik Pandya later said the Men in Blue fell short by 10-15 runs at the Providence Stadium in Guyana. Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson all perished for single digit scores. In the post match ceremony, Pandya said, “If am being honest that was not a pleasing batting performance, we could have batted better. 160+ or 170 would have been a good total.” “With the current combination we have we will have to trust our top 7 batters to come good and hope the bowlers win you games. We have to find ways to make sure we have the right balance, but at the same time batters need to take more responsibility,” he added. Pandya, though, hailed Tilak Verma for top-scoring with 51 runs from 41 balls including a six and five boundaries. In the series opener, Verma had scored 39 runs from 22 balls. “Left-hander (Tilak Verma) coming at 4 gives us variety. It doesn’t feel like it’s his second international game,” said Pandya. Pandya hailed Pooran for taking the game away from India despite the hosts being 17/3 at one stage. The left-hander smashed 67 runs from 40 balls laden with four sixes and six boundaries. “The way he has been batting, becomes very difficult to rotate spinners. And the way he batted, took the game quite into their hands,” said Pandya. On his showing, Pooran said, “Satisfied that I performed. The beauty of the game is it is never over till it’s over. Being consistent is something I am wanting to do. I won’t say it is a purple patch. I have been working hard in the last couple of years, but we have been losing. Now I look at the game differently and want to continue to entertain,” he said as the Player of the Match. Pooran said he didn’t buckle even though the score read 2/2 and 17/3. “The score didn’t matter to me as long as I was batting. It was about being smart and controlling the game. I felt like it was a decent wicket and we are accustomed to get such wickets here. The bowlers are going to give you half-volleys, full tosses.” The two teams will clash in the third T20I at the same venue on Tuesday (August 8). The visitors now need a win to stay alive in the series.