Thiruvananthapuram: If Kerala were to be awarded a Test venue status by the BCCI and should that honour be bestowed upon Thiruvananthapuram, there is every possibility that it would finish in a couple of days as opposed to the punishing five-day affairs Test matches normally are.
It is because the city and its precious venue, the Sports Hub at Karyavattom, the only recognised international cricket stadium in Kerala at present, seems to have developed a liking for pruned down cricket matches.
If the only T20 international it hosted last November was an eight-over-per-side game, the maiden ODI game here Thursday took no more than 47 overs in total.
While the T20 was curtailed by rain, the ODI that happened in bright and humid conditions was cut short by a dominant Team India that crushed the West Indies by nine wickets to wrap up the ODI series 3-1. Ravindra Jadeja's brilliant 4 for 34 followed by Rohit Sharma's studious knock 63 not out derailed the visitors' hope of levelling the series. The Windies withered away in front of Indian bowling, making just 104 runs inside 32 overs.
Rohit Sharma took twelve balls to open his account, but after that, went through the gears with consummate ease. Skipper Virat Kohli offered company with an unbeaten 33 as India got the winning runs inside 15 overs.
