Staff Reporter.
India beat West Indies by six wickets after bowling the tourists out for 176 in the first one-day international.
West Indies slumped to 79-7 before Jason Holder made 57 to drag his side up to a respectable total in Ahmedabad.
Spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Washington Sundar shared seven wickets in what was India’s 1,000th ODI.
“It felt good,” Chahal, who was named player of the match said. “Washi struck twice in an over so we knew pressure was on them.
“My job was to sustain that pressure. I got the feeling watching Washi bowl that the ball was gripping.”
In reply, new skipper Rohit Sharma top-scored with 60 after sharing an 84-run opening stand with Ishan Kishan as India cruised home in the 28th over.
“I don’t believe in a perfect game,” Rohit, who took over from Virat Kohli as India’s ODI captain in December, said.
“You cannot be perfect. We want to keep getting better. All in all, it was a great effort from everyone. We ticked all boxes – pretty happy with that.”
Former captain Holder reached the landmark of 2,000 ODI runs during his half-century before being dismissed by Prasidh Krishna.
The second game of the three-match series will take place on Wednesday at the same venue.