Now, that’s a surprise!

India’s Virat Kohli en route his 52 during the second T20I against West Indies at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday. Pic/PTI

The second T20 International turned out to be a close-fought game with the West Indies in with a chance in the last over to pull off an incredible win.

Sadly for them, there was no Carlos Brathwaite who had hit four consecutive sixes at the very venue to win the game for them in the ICC World T20 final against England about six years back. Rovman Powell managed two but Harshal Patel showed why he has become the go-to bowler for captains by delivering excellent final two deliveries to ensure India won by eight runs and wrapped up the series.

The series win gives the selection committee a chance to have a look at some of those who have been sitting in the reserves in the dugout. There is also a three-match T20 series against Sri Lanka that starts within four days of the West Indies team going home and that also can be used to have a look at some fringe players.

Talented players galore

India are today blessed with so much T20 talent available that they can afford to play two teams and still be able to win. It actually would be interesting to see the best Indian T20 team play against an India team from the reserve bench and see what the result could be. It won't be a surprise if the bench team takes the game right down till the end. In fact, after the easy win in the first T20, the thought did cross the mind that a contest between the current India team and the reserve bench would be perhaps more entertaining. The second game though gives the hope that the Windies are looking to end the tour on a high and if they do that, then we could be in for some of the brightest fireworks seen at the Eden for a long time.

Windies' capitulation hurts

Being a huge admirer of West Indies cricket it did hurt to see them capitulate in the ODI series though of course as an Indian I am very happy at the results but still wanted a close contest which was seen in the second T20 match.

It was a surprise to see Kohli being released from the last T20 game against West Indies and the Sri Lanka T20 series as well. There was so much talk about his form so all the more reason to wonder why he was released just after he had played a fluent innings in the second T20 against the Windies. As a batsman, you want to continue playing when you are getting runs as you don't want to lose the rhythm and the flow which being in form brings. Batsmen know that form is a fickle mistress and even in an innings being stuck at the non-striker's end can make a batsman lose his touch so all the more reason to keep playing when the runs are flowing. There is no tiredness either as the mind takes over with the satisfaction of the ball hitting the middle of the bat regularly. It's when a batsman is not in form that he needs to take a break so that he can analyse what's going wrong away from the pressure of the game and then practise to work out the areas that need bettering.

Anyway, the next 10 days should be interesting indeed. We will be able to see if the Kohli break extends to the first Test match in Mohali which means that his 100th Test match would be in Bangalore. Being an RCB player since the beginning of the IPL in 2008, his 100th game there would be a real Dhoom dhadaka event. A 100th Test match is a truly special one for any player and Kohli is one of the greatest players the game has seen.

AB de Villiers, another great of the game and a RCB hero had his 100th Test match at Bangalore some years back and the way the crowd cheered him despite it being against India was heartwarming indeed. If memory serves right, he got 80 plus and missed out on a century after which most of the game got washed out.

Will Kohli's 100th Test be in Chandigarh which is currently cold and chilly and so not many spectators may turn up, or in bright and brilliant Bangalore where RCB will ensure it is an event fit for The King?

The next 10 days will tell.

Professional Management Group