Thiruvananthapuram:Opener Justin Greaves hit his maiden one-day international century to guide West Indies to a total of 295 for 7 in the first of three matches against India on Sunday.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, Greaves scored 101 runs and built a formidable 135-run partnership for the opening stand with John Campbell, who contributed 62 runs. This partnership provided a strong start for the tourists after they were invited to bat first.
However, India's left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav made significant inroads in the middle overs, returning with figures of 4 for 40, including a maiden over. Kuldeep broke the opening partnership by dismissing Campbell and then went on to remove West Indies skipper Shai Hope for 12. He also claimed the wickets of Greaves and Jewel Andrew on consecutive deliveries.
Greaves reached his century with a single but was dismissed lbw in the following over after an innings lasting 108 balls and including 12 boundaries. Kuldeep then had Andrew caught at slip for a duck, narrowly missing out on a hat-trick as Roston Chase survived the next delivery.
Chase partnered with Amir Jangoo to stabilize the innings, adding 52 runs for the sixth wicket. Chase was eventually dismissed by Prasidh Krishna for 24, but Jangoo remained unbeaten on 58, reaching his fifty off 38 balls.
This series is considered a crucial part of India's preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup, particularly focusing on key players Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who are now concentrating solely on the 50-over format following their retirements from Test and T20 cricket.