Ind vs WI: Ashwin, Saha pile on tons

St. Lucia: All-rounder R. Ashwin scored his fourth Test century while wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha made 104 as the two raised a partnership of 213 for the sixth wicket to put India in a strong position on the second day of the third Test against the West Indies here on Wednesday.

With a century already in the first match of the series and all three of his Test hundreds against the West Indies, Ashwin is looking solid. He was stuck on 99 for about 20 minutes in the morning session.

By contrast, Saha accelerated his innings while his partner was becalmed to hit his maiden century in Test cricket. Their 213-run partnership at the Darren Sammy National Stadium is the best sixth-wicket effort for India against the West Indies in Tests.

West Indies lacked purpose and aggression in their effort on the second morning, in stark contrast to the opening session of the Test the previous day.

Then, fast bowlers Shannon Gabriel and debutant Alzarri Joseph made early strikes and later had India struggling at 126 for five just before the tea break.
Missed opportunities in the final session of day one have now proved costly with Ashwin dropped at short-leg off Roston Chase and then caught off a Gabriel no-ball.

Ashwin and Saha picked up from where they left off late on the first day, attacking the second new ball at the start of play on day two before settling back into the watchful mode of their innings.

Yet even as the score slowed to a crawl for much of the session, West Indies captain Jason Holder just could not conjure the breakthrough even as he rotated his four frontline bowlers along with the off-spin of Chase, which has become an increasingly important element of the home side’s limited armoury in the series.
It was only in the last half-hour to lunch that the sixth-wicket pair displayed any concerted aggression and Saha seemed set to get to three figures ahead of his senior partner, such was the almost complete absence of stroke play from Ashwin at that point. On the first day, India had dug themselves into a hole at a precarious 126/5 before Ashwin and Saha got together.