Justin Greaves scores maiden ODI century, while John Campbell and Amir Jangoo hit fifties in the series opener at Thiruvananthapuram
Summary: Justin Greaves struck his maiden ODI century and John Campbell scored 62 as West Indies reached 295/7 against India in the first ODI. Kuldeep Yadav claimed four wickets to lead India’s fightback after a blistering opening stand, while Amir Jangoo’s unbeaten 58 helped the visitors approach the 300-run mark.
Thiruvananthapuram, Sept 2026 : Justin Greaves struck a fluent maiden ODI century, while John Campbell and Amir Jangoo scored half-centuries as West Indies posted 295/7 against India in the opening match of the series at the Greenfield International Stadium here on Sunday.
Greaves made 101 off 108 deliveries, hitting 12 boundaries, while Campbell contributed 62 off 60 balls, including six fours and three sixes. Jangoo provided a late flourish with an unbeaten 58 off 43 deliveries.
However, India’s wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav turned the contest with a four-wicket haul, finishing with figures of 4-40. Pacer Prasidh Krishna claimed two wickets for 60 runs as India pulled back the scoring after West Indies had threatened to post a total well beyond 300.
Asked to bat first in hot and humid conditions, the visitors made an aggressive start. Greaves and Campbell took advantage of India's early struggles with the ball, racing to 85 without losing a wicket during the powerplay.
Prasidh began economically, conceding just one run in the opening over. But Nitish Kumar Reddy’s first over proved expensive, yielding 18 runs as Greaves struck four boundaries, including a no-ball driven through extra cover and a free hit flicked through midwicket.
Greaves continued to attack the seamers, striking Prasidh for three fours in the seventh over. A back-foot punch through cover point stood out among his shots as he found gaps with confidence.
Campbell joined the assault when Ravindra Jadeja was introduced in the ninth over. The opener top-edged a sweep for four before launching two sixes over long-on, helping West Indies complete the powerplay at 85/0.
India’s spinners subsequently managed to slow the scoring. Jadeja and debutant batting all-rounder Naman Dhir kept the batters from maintaining the same pace, but Greaves continued to accumulate runs. He reached his half-century in the 14th over, cutting Dhir past point, while the team brought up 100.
The partnership was West Indies’ first century opening stand against India since Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis added 115 runs at Port of Spain in 2019.
Greaves, who was troubled by a shin problem, survived a close run-out appeal after Kuldeep entered the attack. Campbell, meanwhile, reached his fifty in the 17th over and struck Kuldeep for a six over deep midwicket.
Kuldeep finally broke the 135-run opening partnership in the 20th over. Campbell attempted a sweep but top-edged the delivery to short fine leg, departing for 62. The stand was the third-highest opening partnership by West Indies against India on Indian soil.
Keacy Carty struggled to settle against the Indian attack. He nearly chipped a return catch to Kuldeep and later survived when a toe-ended scoop narrowly missed the stumps. His difficult innings ended in the 31st over when he attempted to attack a short delivery from Prasidh but could only send the ball towards mid-on.
Kuldeep then removed West Indies captain Shai Hope, who miscued a lofted shot and was caught at backward point. Greaves brought up his maiden ODI century with a sharp single through point, but his innings ended soon afterwards.
Attempting a sweep against Kuldeep’s googly, Greaves missed the ball and was struck on the back leg. India reviewed the decision, and ball-tracking showed the delivery hitting the top of off stump.
Kuldeep struck again almost immediately, dismissing Jewel Andrew for a golden duck. The youngster played forward to a googly and edged the ball off the shoulder of his bat, with Rohit Sharma taking a sharp catch at slip.
The spinner’s spell shifted momentum firmly towards India, restricting West Indies to a scoring rate of 4.27 runs per over between overs 11 and 40.
Roston Chase briefly eased the pressure with a reverse-swept boundary off Kuldeep and successive fours against Dhir. He and Jangoo added 50 runs before Prasidh bowled Chase for 24 in the 45th over, as the batter attempted to heave the ball over midwicket.
Jangoo kept the innings moving, taking three boundaries off Prasidh in the 43rd over and later hitting Gurnoor Brar for consecutive fours. He followed those shots with a six over deep midwicket to reach his second ODI half-century in 38 balls.
Nitish Reddy dismissed Matthew Forde in the final over, with the batter miscuing a full toss to long-off. Jangoo remained unbeaten on 58, but West Indies finished five runs short of the 300 mark.
With a target of 296, India’s strong batting line-up will now look to capitalise on the platform provided by Kuldeep’s middle-order breakthroughs.
Brief Scores: West Indies 295/7 in 50 overs (Justin Greaves 101, John Campbell 62, Amir Jangoo 58 not out; Kuldeep Yadav 4-40, Prasidh Krishna 2-60) against India.
