India recorded an easy five-wicket win in the first ODI match against West Indies on Thursday, July 27. Indian spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav took combined seven wickets to bowl out West Indies' innings on just 114 runs and then Ishan Kishan smashed a fifty to help India take a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.
Indian pacers Hardik Pandya, Mukesh Kumar and Shardul Thakur gave India a sensational start with three early wickets. Then senior spin all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja bowled an impressive six-over spell to crack West Indies' middle order at Bridgetown's Kensington Oval.
Jadeja picked the valuable wickets of Shimron Hetmyer and Rovaman Powell to stun the hosts. He finished his spell with Shepherd's wicket in the 18th over and entered the history books. With three wickets, Jadeja took his ODI wickets tally to 194 in just 175 innings and 44 of those wickets came against West Indies.
The 34-year-old left-arm spinner became the leading wicket-taker for India in ODIs against West Indies. He surpassed the World Cup-winning captain and legendary pacer Kapil Dev and legendary spinner Anil Kumble to clinch the top spot.
Indian bowlers with most wickets against West Indies in ODIs
- Ravindra Jadeja - 44* wickets in 30 matches
- Kapil Dev - 43 wickets in 42 matches
- Anil Kumble - 41 wickets in 26 matches
- Mohammed Shami - 37* wickets in 18 matches
- Harbhajan Singh - 33 wickets in 31 matches
Notably, Jadeja also equaled Courtney Walsh's record of 44 wickets in India vs West Indies ODI fixtures as well. Jadeja now has taken 44 wickets in just 30 ODI matches against West Indies at an average of 28.68 and an economy rate of 4.90 with one five-wicket haul so far. India's star pacer Mohammed Shami closely follows Jadeja with 37 wickets in just 18 ODI innings but is not part of India's ODI team for the West Indies series.
