Former Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has attributed West Indies' batting success to Shai Hope's restrained batting and excellent shot selection. Along with this, he has described Keemo Paul's decisive bowling as the turning point of West Indies' recent victory.
Analyzing West Indies' performance after their win against India, Pujara praised the visiting team's calculated aggression, their ability to take advantage of Indian bowling mistakes and the pressure created in both innings.
He warned that the Indian team will need to bring more discipline and diversity in bowling in the next match to be held in Bengaluru. Pujara also said that Shai Hope's approach at the crease is the main reason for his brilliant consistency.
Speaking to 'GeoStar', Pujara said, “Shai Hope has proved to be a big challenge for India in this white-ball series. The most important thing is that he does not play shots indiscriminately without thinking. He trusts his natural game and plays shots in the right gap. That is why he is able to score runs quickly without taking much risk. The way he times the ball, plays normal cricketing shots and knows his favorite spots very well, That's what makes them so effective.”
The former Indian batsman further said, “He is also a good player of spin, because on this pitch it was a bit difficult for the batsmen to dominate the spinners. However, Hope's game was very clear. When a batsman has so much control over his game, it becomes very difficult for the bowlers to create pressure.
Once he settles on the crease, it becomes very difficult to stop him. If you look at his strike rate, his performance throughout the series has been excellent. Four centuries are now the most scored by any batsman on the tour of India. He has been the best performer in this T20 International series and the statistics also show the same.”
While Hope caught everyone's attention with his batting, Pujara also praised Keemo Paul, whose bowling proved crucial in West Indies' victory. Paul made a big impact by dismissing Sanju Samson on his very first ball and also sent Ishan Kishan to the pavilion in the same over. After this, he changed the course of the match by taking three wickets in the 19th over.
Pujara further said, “This victory was entirely in the name of Keemo Paul. He took the big wicket of Sanju Samson on his very first ball of the match, who was caught out at deep backward square-leg. After this, in the same over, he also dismissed Ishan Kishan and then confirmed the victory by taking three wickets in the 19th over.
“Despite being in a difficult position and needing to win the last two matches, West Indies not only saved themselves from losing the series but also sent a strong message to the hosts that they are here to win.”
Pujara also pointed to the collective efforts of the West Indies batsmen, especially Hope, Shimron Hetmyer and Sherfane Rutherford, which exposed the weaknesses in India's bowling plans. According to the former Indian batsman, the aggressive intentions of the visiting team along with their excellent ability to understand the length of the balls left no room for error for the Indian bowlers.
He said, “The way the West Indies batsmen adopted an aggressive stance against us during the powerplay and even after that, the Indian bowlers were not able to bowl the right length. They also did not show much variety in their bowling.
However, sometimes you have to appreciate the batting of the West Indies players and the shots they played, especially Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer and Sherfane Rutherford. All three of them were important players in their team's victory. His performance was extraordinary.”
The former Indian batsman further added, “They put a lot of pressure on the Indian bowlers, and there was very little room for error for the bowlers. When Naman Dheer came to bowl, the West Indies batsmen picked up his length very quickly.