In the end, it all came very easy. India stamped their class and authority on the series with an emphatic 237run win on Saturday to keep their stellar record against West Indies intact. With just one Test to go, India won the four-Test series 2-0, their third successive series triumph in the Caribbean. In fact, West Indies haven't beaten India since 2002.
The pace trio of Ishant Sharma, Mohamamd Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar struck hard and fast to wreck the West Indies batting on the final day. The spinners chipped in with some late strikes to help finish the job. Set to get an improbable 346 in a possible 87 overs on the final day, a woeful West Indies slumped to 108 all out to lose not only the match and the series, but also a lot of face.
It was a combination of some penetrative fast bowling and hesitant batting which put the hosts on the back foot. While Shami used the bouncer to good effect, Bhuvneshwar, who had rocked the West Indian boat with a five for, bowled a demanding line to keep the batsmen guessing.
Shami drew first blood by getting a nervous Leon Johnson caught at forward short-leg by Rohit Sharma for a nought. Bhuvneshwar then dealt West Indies a big blow by trapping Kraigg Brathwaite plumb in front with one which, for a change, came in and then straightened. Brathwaite is one of the few West Indies batsmen who have shown the capacity to occupy the crease and his ouster would have put immense pressure on the rest of the batting order.
With the team reeling at 42, the onus was on senior pros Marlon Samuels and Darren Bravo to slug it out. Samuels disappointed yet again, letting a straight one from Ishant to hit his stumps. He indicated that the ball had kept low but the fact was Samuels simply stood in the crease and had no defence to offer.
Ashwin, Saha restore parity after early blows
Earlier, West Indies bowled with vigour and discipline to leave India in a bit of a spot by Tea on Day 1 of the third Test at the Darren Sammy Stadium in St Lucia. However, a superb unbeaten stand of 108 between R Ashwin and Wriddhiman Saha bailed India out of some trouble and took them to a decent position at 234 for 5 when stumps were called on August 9.
The pair masked all the trouble India had put themselves in during the first two sessions. It was a morning of surprises at St Lucia. The pitch was a welcome sight, offering the bowlers assistance and making it tough for batsmen to score easily. West Indies handed a debut to young fast bowler Alzarri Joseph. But the biggest surprise came from the Indian team as they made three changes to the squad that played in Jamaica, each one more surprising than the last.
With the pitch offering good bounce and carry, Umesh Yadav, who has a tendency to surprise batsmen with his pace, was dropped for Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Ravindra Jadeja was preferred over Amit Mishra, while Rohit Sharma's call-up to the side in place of Cheteshwar Pujara was a bolt from the blue. Murali Vijay, presumably still unfit, did not make it back to the side.
