WI vs IND: Who will ace the series decider?
West Indies handed India a six-wicket defeat in the second ODI at Kensington Oval, Barbados. The three-match series is now leveled (1-1). India's strategy of testing the bench strength backfired as they were bowled out for 181. Meanwhile, WI, who did not qualify for the upcoming 50-over World Cup, made the most of it. Who will come out on top in the series decider?
Pitch report, conditions, and streaming details
The Brian Lara Stadium, Trinidad, will host the match on August 1. The pitch here has been on the slower side. Therefore, the batters will get runs only when they get set. 160 reads the average first innings score here in ODIs. Fans can watch the match live on Doordarshan from 7:00pm IST in various languages and live-stream on FanCode and JioCinema.
A look at the head-to-head record
India have the edge in the head-to-head record against West India in ODI cricket. The Indians have won 71 matches, while WI have bagged only 64 victories out of the total 141 ODIs played against each other. Two matches ended in ties and four finished without a result. Their last meeting was the second ODI of this series, which WI won by six wickets.
WI finally breaks the deadlock
In the second ODI in Barbados, West Indies defeated India for the first time in ODIs since December 2019. The Men in Blue beat WI in nine successive ODIs in this period.
Will Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli return to XI?
India are the hosts for this year's 50-over World Cup. However, they seem to be in a fix at the moment. India fielded a Hardik Pandya-led second-string team in the second ODI against WI, and the fresh names could not stand the challenge. It remains to be seen if Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli return to the XI.
A look at the Probable XIs
India (Probable XI): Rohit Sharma (captain), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Umran Malik, and Mukesh Kumar. WI (Probable XI): Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Alick Athanaze, Shai Hope (captain and wicket-keeper), Shimron Hetmyer, Keacy Carty, Romario Shepherd, Yannic Cariah, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, and Jayden Seales.
Here are the key performers
Although the Indian batters seem to be struggling, youngster Ishan has fared well. He already has two fifties in two games in the series (107 runs). WI skipper Hope is the only batter with over 100 runs in the series. Spinners Kuldeep and Motie jointly lead the wickets tally, having taken five wickets. The former averages just 7.20 after two games.
Here are the Fantasy XI options
Fantasy XI (Option 1): Ishan Kishan, Shai Hope (captain), Brandon King, Keacy Carty, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja (vice-captain), Romario Shepherd, Shardul Thakur, Gudakesh Motie, and Mukesh Kumar. Fantasy XI (Option 2): Ishan Kishan (captain), Shai Hope, Brandon King, Alick Athanaze, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja, Romario Shepherd (vice-captain), Shardul Thakur, Gudakesh Motie, and Alzarri Joseph.
