Dhawan, Kohli push along after slow start

Tea India 179 for 3 (Dhawan 84, Kohli 65*, Bishoo 2-47) v West IndiesLive scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Some considered him lucky to be playing in this Test, he enjoyed some luck against testing bowling at the start of the innings, but Shikhar Dhawan helped India keep a disciplined West Indies attack at bay with his first half-century in eight innings. The man who made the call to persist with Dhawan, Virat Kohli, provided the impetus the Indian innings needed, reaching his highest score against West Indies in a 105-run partnership with Dhawan, which ended at the stroke of tea.

India would have expected to work hard for their runs when they chose to bat on a slow pitch surrounded by a slow outfield in St John’s, but hands in front of helmets as protective action wouldn’t have been on agenda. In their first Test under new bowling coach Roddy Estwick, the West Indies attack, thin on numbers but displaying tenacity, tested the Indian top order in the first session of the series. Shannon Gabriel, making a Test comeback after a good comeback in the ODI triangular series earlier in the season, rattled the openers with his pace, accounting for M Vijay with a lovely bouncer, but Dhawan was prepared to weather the storm before capitalising on the second string, an older ball and falling intensity. Kohli, on the other hand, came out full of intent.

The play began along expected lines. India packed their side with bowlers, specialists all, and West Indies took the safer route of playing the extra batsman, debutant Roston Chase. India were expected to look for runs, and relatively quick runs, while West Indies were expected to frustrate India. On the field it was going to be a …

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