West Indies beat India by 2 wickets,go 2-0 up in T20Is

Providence (Guyana): West Indies beat India by two wickets in the second T20 International to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series here on Sunday.

Opting to bat first, India scored 152 for seven. West Indies completed the chase of 153 with seven balls to spare, as Nicholas Pooran blazed his way to a matchwinning 67 off 40 balls.

Earlier, playing in only his second match, Tilak Varma top-scored for the visitors with a 41-ball 51, which is also his maiden half-century at this level.

There were two wickets apiece for Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph and Romario Shepherd for the home team at the Providence Stadium.

Skipper Hardik Pandya made 24 off 18 balls, while opener Ishan Kishan was dismissed after a 23-ball 27. India lost the series opener by four runs at Tarouba, Trinidad.

Earlier, negotiating disciplined bowlers, Tilak Varma produced a wellcalculated half-century, his first in T20Is, to take India to 152 for seven against West Indies in the second match here on Sunday.

The fearless Var ma continued his good run in the shortest format as the 20-year-old scooped, swept and heaved the ball all around the ground to score 51 off 41 balls, becoming the youngest Indian to score a fifty in T20 Internationals.

Coming out to bat with India in a spot of bother at 18/2, Varma put up a crucial 42-run partnership with Ishan Kishan (27) before joining forces with skipper Hardik Pandya to stitch a 38-run stand. Hardik (24) tried to inflate India's total by hitting two sixes but Alzarri Joseph (2/28) produced a cracking yorker to get rid of the Indian skipper.

Brief scores: India: 152/7 in 20 overs (Tilak Varma 51; Romario Shepherd 2/28, Akeal Hosein 2/29, Alzarri Joseph 2/28). West Indies: 155/8 in 18.5 overs (Nicholas Pooran 67; Hardik Pandya 3/35). (PTI)