NEW DELHI: India completed a dominant 2-0 series sweep against the West Indies after securing a seven-wicket victory in the second and final Test at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday.
Chasing a target of 121 for victory, the Indian team comfortably reached the target in the morning session of the final day.
KL Rahul played a crucial role, scoring an unbeaten 58, while B Sai Sudharsan contributed 39 to help India seal the win with ease.
Gambhir Hails Gill’s Leadership
India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, who celebrated his 44th birthday on the same day, praised Shubman Gill for his leadership, following the 2-0 series victory.
Gambhir, who has a stand named after him at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, said the victory was a perfect birthday gift.
Gambhir was full of admiration for Gill’s captaincy, particularly after his leadership in England during a challenging five-match series earlier in the year.
Despite the retirements of former captains Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, Gill stepped up to lead India to a 2-2 draw against a formidable England team, and now, with this 2-0 win against West Indies, Gambhir believes Gill has proven himself as a leader.
“I think he’s already passed his toughest test as a Test captain, and that was in England,” Gambhir remarked.
“Five Test matches over two-and-a-half months against a quality England side, leading an inexperienced team… What more could he have faced?”
Gill’s captaincy has been widely praised, especially after the 26-year-old scored 754 runs in the England series, including a memorable hundred. He also hit his fifth Test century of the year in the series finale against West Indies.
Gambhir shared that his only advice to Gill has been to “just be himself.” He further added, “No one has done him a favour by appointing him the Test and One-day captain. He deserves every bit of it. He’s worked hard and ticks all the boxes.”
Chase Sees Hope for West Indies’ Future
While India celebrated their victory, West Indies’ captain Roston Chase also remained optimistic, despite the 3-0 series loss to Australia earlier this year.
After facing a tough defeat in the series opener in Ahmedabad and being forced to follow-on in Delhi, the West Indies showed resilience in their second innings, with hundreds from John Campbell and Shai Hope. The visitors posted a total of 390 before being bowled out after nearly 119 overs.
Chase described the performance as a “stepping stone” for West Indies cricket, adding that it would give them the confidence and belief to improve in future encounters against top Test nations.
“This performance will give us the belief that we can do it against proper Test-playing nations,” said Chase, looking ahead with hope.
India 518 for 5 dec (Jaiswal 175, Gill 129, Sai Sudharsan 87, Warrican 3-98) and 124 for 3 (Rahul 58*, Chase 2-36)
West Indies 248 (Kuldeep 5-82) and 390 (Campbell 115, Hope, 103, Greaves 50*, Bumrah 3-44, Kuldeep 3-104)
