'Can BCCI Stop Making Dead Pitches?'

'There is nothing for the bowlers and it's killing the game.' SCORECARD: India vs West Indies, 2nd T20I, Ranchi IMAGE: Shai Hope and Sherfane Rutherford led West Indies to a stunning victory. Photograph: ICC Key Points West Indies successfully chased a target of 250 runs against India in Ranchi, levelling the T20I series 1-1. Captain Shai Hope scored a hundred off just 45 balls while Sherfane Rutherford contributed a rapid 84 off 37 balls. India had posted their highest-ever T20I total against the West Indies, 249/5, with Sanju Samson scoring 82 off 41 balls. The chase was the West Indies' highest successful T20I chase and the second-highest in the format's history. Nearly 500 runs, a 250-run target chased down with nine balls to spare, and a bowling attack left searching for answers. Friday's T20I in Ranchi had everything a cricket fan could ask for, as the West Indies produced a stunning batting assault to outclass India. Shai Hope and Sherfane Rutherford led the charge in a chase that few would have predicted after the visitors slipped to 5/2. The extraordinary contest has since set social media buzzing, with fans reacting to India's bowling woes and the West Indies' breathtaking comeback. India's Record Total Not Enough First, India piled up 249/5, their highest-ever T20I total against the West Indies, powered by Sanju Samson's 21-ball fifty (82 off 41), Ishan Kishan's quickfire 43 and a late blitz from Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma. It looked like more than enough. But it wasn't. West Indies' Historic Chase Captain Shai Hope smashed a hundred off just 45 balls and Sherfane Rutherford added a 37-ball 84 as the visitors chased down 250 in 18.3 overs. It was the West Indies' highest successful T20I chase and the second-highest in the format's history. The result levelled the series 1-1. It's the latest in a worrying run. Just last week in Guwahati, a target of around 400 was chased down in an ODI. Commentators on air kept marvelling at how effortlessly the ball was clearing the ropes and one line summed up the mood, 'this wasn't bat versus ball, it was blue bat versus maroon bat.' Fan Reactions, Pitch Debate Fans online weren't as amused. Many pointed the finger at the pitches and by extension, the BCCI. 'We really need to look into our bowling department very seriously,' one user wrote, adding that the West Indies batters 'treated the Indian bowlers like kids'. Others took aim at the surfaces. 'Can the BCCI stop making dead pitches? There is nothing for the bowlers and it's killing the game,' said another. Not everyone was upset, though. Some neutrals celebrated the West Indies' fearless hitting, calling it a fitting lesson that you can't just prepare flat pitches and expect to win. For India, the questions are now two-fold -- how do their bowlers, who went for heavy runs even with Mayank Yadav's early burst of three wickets, regroup, and does the game itself need a better balance between bat and ball?