West Indies paceman Daren Powell bowls during the second one-day international against India in Cuttack, yesterday. Powell claimed four wickets, but the West Indies lost by 20 runs. - Reuters

CUTTACK, India (AP):

INDIA RECOVERED from a torrid start to clinch a 20-run victory yesterday in a low-scoring second limited-overs international against the West Indies.

Defending a modest score of 189, Indian spinners struck back on the turning track to bundle the West Indies out for 169.

The victory gave India a 2-0 lead in the four-match series.

Opting to bat first after skipper Rahul Dravid won the toss, India got off to a bad start as their top-order perished to reckless strokes.

Reserve wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik revived the home team with a defiant 63 and his 62-run partnership for the eighth wicket with Ajit Agarkar (40).

Karthik struck seven boundaries from 87 deliveries during his maiden half-century in eight one-dayers, which secured him the Man of the Match award.

The West Indies batsmen found it difficult to negotiate Indian spinners on a track where the ball came slowly off the surface.

Middle-order caved in

The West Indies missed their skipper Brian Lara's steadying influence as their middle-order caved in against off-spinner Ramesh Powar (3-42) and Sachin Tendulkar (2-25) after Agarkar had removed stand-in captain Chris Gayle cheaply.

Gayle took over the captaincy in place of Lara, who was rested due to a sore left knee. Team physiotherapist Stephen Partridge said Lara did not want to aggravate his troublesome knee ahead of the upcoming World Cup.

Powar curbed the ambitions of aggressive Dwayne Bravo (31) before adding the wickets of Runako Morton (0) and Denesh Ramdin (six) as India bounced back.

Giving him support from the other end was Tendulkar, who made up for his batting failure by dismissing Dwayne Smith (27) and Ian Bradshaw (two).

"Dinesh played a terrific innings and then all our spinners bowled well to pull off this victory," said Indian skipper Rahul Dravid, seeking to avenge the 4-1 drubbing by the West Indies last year.

Opener Shivnarine Chanderpaul waged a lone battle for West Indies. Watching wickets tumble at the other end, Chanderpaul posted a valiant 66 to keep the Caribbean outfit in the chase before he was the last man out.

Chanderpaul hit four boundaries in his 125-ball knock that ended when he edged a delivery from Zaheer Khan on to his stumps.

Earlier, seam bowler Daren Powell ripped through the Indian top-order to claim four for 27.

Batting crumbled

India's batting crumbled from the moment opener Gautam Gambhir (two) was caught behind by Ramdin when trying to flick a delivery from Bradshaw in the third over.

Former skipper Sourav Ganguly, who top scored with 98 in his comeback to India's one-day team Sunday, made 12 before lobbing a soft catch to Morton at short-midwicket off Powell.

Tendulkar perished for a duck, flicking a soft catch to Devon Smith at mid-on in Powell's next over and India was struggling to 35 for three.

Captain Dravid compiled a 34-ball 22 before Powell struck again by deceiving him with a slower delivery that rattled the stumps after Dravid played the wrong line.

Mahendra Dhoni (six) also fell to a reckless shot, continuing India's poor display when he tapped a soft return catch to Dwayne Smith.

Powell then removed young all-rounder Joginder Sharma (one) by sending a sharp delivery through the bat-pad gap as the batsman tried to play an off-drive.

Harbhajan Singh (six) was clean bowled by Dwayne Bravo.

Karthik's match-turning partnership with Agarkar ended when he was clean bowled by Bradshaw (2-38) trying to steer a straight ball.

Bravo (2-36) dismantled the stumps of Powar, while Agarkar was run out going for a sharp single. Agarkar 47-ball knock contained four hits to the fence.