Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
Time: 1:30 PM IST
Average score at venue (1st inns): 176
Win percentage while batting first: 50%
Pitch conditions:
- The pitch at the world's biggest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad is expected to be batting friendly along with plenty of purchase and support for spin bowlers in the remaining two matches of this three-match ODI series.
- Unlike many other venues in international cricket across the globe, Ahmedabad has spin bowlers recording a higher wicket-share percentage of 61.54% compared to 38.46% for the fast bowlers.
Weather prediction:
A bright and sunny day awaits players on Wednesday for the third ODI between India and West Indies. The temperature will be at a high of 29°C at around 3:00PM local time, following which it will drop down steadily to reach 21°C around the time the game ends. The humidity levels will remain under 40% throughout the game on Wednesday.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD (overall):
Matches played: 134
India won: 65
West Indies won: 63
Tied: 2
No result: 4
In India:
Matches played: 59
India won: 30
West Indies won: 28
Tied: 1
No result: -
Top 3 players from India: Rohit Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar
Top 3 players from West Indies: Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Jason Holder
Top picks for H2H/WTA contest (top 5 players each):
Top 5 players from India: Rohit Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Suryakumar Yadav, Prasidh Krishna
Top 5 players from West Indies: Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Jason Holder, Shamarh Brooks, Romario Shepherd
Q&A:
Should I pick more bowlers, batsmen or all-rounders?
The second ODI between India and West Indies is potentially going to serve as a series decider given that the home team stands a strong chance of clinching the series on Wednesday itself. India have plenty of firepower in their ranks and West Indies will really have to get their A game in front, in order to challenge the home team’s authority. Both the teams have a lot to prove as far as batting is concerned but spinners can have a strong impact on this match given how they bowled particularly for India in the opening ODI last Sunday. Adding more to the batting strength while carrying a couple of potent spinners would be the right approach for this ODI.
From which team should I pick more players in my XI? Which team is stronger?
For the sheer depth and the skills that their batsmen get on the table, India are the stronger side compared to the West Indies. For the Caribbean cricketers, the shorter the format the easier it becomes for them to play cricket — as it was witnessed in the first ODI. The West Indies had done recently until the spinners were brought on by the Indian captain Rohit Sharma, following which the pair of Yuzvendra Chahal and Washington Sundar snaffled 7 wickets between them to leave West Indies with just 176 runs to defend. West Indies still have plenty of exciting batsmen such as Shamarh Brooks, Shai Hope, Jason Holder and Alzarri Joseph and Akeal Hosein in the bowling department. But overall, India are the stronger side and hot favourites to clinch the series in the second ODI on Wednesday.
MORE INFORMATION: Having missed out on playing the first ODI, India vice-captain KL Rahul will be available for selection for the match on Wednesday. In all likelihood, Rahul should replace wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan at the top and partner with Rohit Sharma for the first wicket. India's bowlers were totally impressive in the first ODI and so was their debutant all-rounder Deepak Hooda. India are not expected to be looking to make any sort of changes to the playing XI which looked spot on as far as selection was concerned. The same could be said for West Indies but the Caribbean cricketers failed to put out performances that mattered, with Jason Holder waging a lone battle with the bat.
Players’ form: Rohit marked a strong comeback to international cricket after missing a couple of series against New Zealand and South Africa, hammering a rapid half-century (60 from 51 balls with 10 fours and a six) last Sunday. It was interesting to see the tactics of short bowling being deployed by West Indies against former India captain Virat Kohli, who was taken by surprise with the visiting team’s ploy. India middle-order batsman Suryakumar was among runs and so was debutant all-rounder Hooda and expected to carry on with their form with the bat. On the other hand, the West Indies will require their top order batsmen to make more than they did in the first ODI — with almost all of them getting starts but failing to convert them into big innings. The form of Chahal and Sundar will be crucial for both the teams — for India they can deliver match-winning spells whereas if West Indies play them well, the Caribbean team will find itself in a far better situation.
Changes in squad (if any): NO
Likely XIs:
INDIA: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan/Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Deepak Hooda, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammad Siraj.
WEST INDIES: Shai Hope (wk), Brandon King, Nicholas Pooran, Shamarh Brooks, Darren Bravo, Kieron Pollard (c), Romario Shepherd, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Kemar Roach, Alzarri Joseph.
Fantasy XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Shai Hope, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (vc&wk), Nicholas Pooran, Kieron Pollard, Yuzvendra Chahal, Deepak Chahar, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph.
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West Indies wary of India spin threat in 2nd ODI
India will look to dominate West Indies once again with their spin bowlers who delivered a match-winning spell in the first ODI at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on a Sunday. A six-wicket victory gave India an advantage of 1-0 lead in the three-match series, which Rohit Sharma-led team will want to convert into 2-0 resulting in a series on Wednesday, when the two teams meet again for the second ODI.
India made most of West Indies’ frailties against spin bowlers as the pair of Chahal and Sundar stifled the free-flowing Caribbean batsmen, denying them the strokes and bamboozling them with flight and turn in order to deliver big for the home team. The win for India on Sunday was their first this year in the format, as they had entered the series on the back of an embarrassing series to South Africa in which they were whitewashed 0-3.
Plenty of West Indies batsmen got starts but failed to convert and this will be their biggest challenge on Wednesday, along with their ability to tackle spin bowling better than they did in the first match. Jason Holder provided strong support to a faltering batting line-up with a fine half-century and a study 78-run stand for the eighth wicket with Fabian Allen was enough to push the Caribbean side past the 175-run mark, which was never enough against rampant Indian batting line-up.
Indian captain Rohit, in company of wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan, knocked off more than half of the runs in only 13.1 overs, proving how one-sided this India versus West Indies bilateral affair can be unless the visiting team pulls up their socks and puts up a fight.
The West Indies will need more from their specialist batsmen along with senior fast bowler Kemar Roach, who was very expensive in the first ODI. At the same time, left-arm spinner Hosein will also need more support from his fielders having bowled extremely well in the first ODI with ordinary contributions from the others in the field.
While the Caribbean side is not likely to make any changes to their playing combination, India would certainly want to bring in their regular vice-captain Rahul in place of Kishan and team up the former with Rohit at the top of the order. Kohli will continue to remain at the centre of attraction given that the Indian batting maestro was surprised by a short ball ploy by the West Indies bowlers, against which he could not do much in the first ODI.
The home team will also be confident and satisfied given how Suryakumar and Hooda went about their jobs to finish the game with the bat, which was set up by the pair of Chahal and Sundar. A lot, however, is still expected from the middle-order batsmen who have not put up enough runs together on board in the recent past. But there are no big concerns for India with the ball, as in the first game the fast bowling troika of Prasidh Krishna, Mohammad Siraj and Shardul Thakur bowled well to keep pressure family on the West Indies batsmen.
