Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Time: 7:00 PM IST
Average score at venue (1st inns): 171
Win percentage while batting first: 100%
Pitch conditions:
- With all matches of this series to be played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, India and the West Indies can expect similar kind of surface and weather conditions for the remaining two matches of this three-match affair.
- Spin bowlers will continue to have a major role to play in the remainder of the series, having proved their worth and importance in the first match, with Ravi Bishnoi leading the pack. Traditionally, spin bowlers have taken 53.85% of the wickets at the Eden Gardens with the fast bowlers getting the remaining 46.15%.
Weather prediction:
The temperature will be at a low of 23°C at the start of the match on Friday night in Kolkata, with the mercury dropping down to 20°C around the time the game ends. The players will witness humidity levels rising sharply above 50% on Friday evening.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD (overall):
Matches played: 18
India won: 11
West Indies won: 6
Tied: -
No result: 1
In India:
Matches played: 8
India won: 6
West Indies won: 2
Tied: -
No result: -
Top 3 players from India: R Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi
Top 3 players from West Indies: Rovman Powell, Nicholas Pooran, Kyle Mayers
Top picks for H2H/WTA contest (top 5 players each):
Top 5 players from India: R Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan
Top 5 players from West Indies: Rovman Powell, Nicholas Pooran, Kyle Mayers, Brandon King, Akeal Hosein
Q & A:
Should I pick more bowlers, batsmen or all-rounders?
Going by the script of the first T20 match between India and West Indies on Wednesday night, adding more to the batting strength and carrying enough spin bowling options would be the right approach for this match. For India, the pair of Ravi Bishnoi and Yuzvendra Chahal did a commendable job of not allowing the West Indies batsmen to free up their arms and get into aggressive mode. With the bat, India did stutter in the middle overs losing three wickets in quick succession, but largely, they were in control of the chase which was eventually achieved by 6 wickets in hand and more than an over to spare.
From which team should I pick more players in my XI? Which team is stronger?
While India have the advantage of playing in favourable conditions at home, the West Indies are no stranger to it having spent plenty of time in the format as well as in such conditions that are found in Asia, in the various T20 leagues. The visiting batsmen are also at ease as far as conditions are concerned but it is their shortcomings against spin bowling that have been a consistent issue for them in this tour. Nicolas Pooran displayed his batting prowess in the first match and if he had more support from any of the other batsmen, the West Indies would have finished with more than 157/7. Given their all-round balance and skill sets, India are the stronger side in this bilateral affair and should have more players featuring in the fantasy cricket playing XI.
MORE INFORMATION: India captain R Sharma had declared before the start of the series that the home team is going to get those players a long run, whom they think will play in the T20 World Cup a few months from now. The inclusion of Ravi Bishnoi in the bowling attack only adds more variation for India, who have also been benefited with the rise of Harshal Patel in the fast bowling department. Both Bishnoi and Patel shared 4 wickets between them in the first match. India are not likely to make any major changes to their playing XI as they are now eyeing a series win on Friday.
Players’ form: Indian captain R Sharma might have shunted the media, requesting them to not talk at a stretch about the form of the former Indian captain V Kohlii, but attention will remain on the batting maestro who has been struggling for big runs for a while now. V Kohlii looked in good rhythm on Wednesday in the first match until he played one into the hands of long on, and he should have been disappointed with the way he fell after a promising start. The absence of KL Rahul also provides Ishan Kishan along the run at the top of the order. For the West Indies, having Nicolas Pooran among top three will be the right approach but they need more from their batsmen collectively in order to counter India's spin thread which has troubled him in every match on this tour.
Changes in squad (if any): NO
Likely XIs:
INDIA: R Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, V Kohlii, Rishabh Pant (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal
WEST INDIES: Kyle Mayers, Brandon King, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Kieron Pollard (c), Rovman Powell, Roston Chase, Romario Shepherd, Fabian Allen, Odean Smith, Akeal Hosein, Sheldon Cottrell
Fantasy XI: R Sharma (c), Kyle Mayers, Ishan Kishan, Nicholas Pooran (vc&wk), Rovman Powell, Suryakumar Yadav, Odean Smith, Yuzvendra Chahal, Akeal Hosein, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
―
India look to seal T20I series against misfiring West Indies
The R Sharma-led Indian cricket team will look to seal the T20I series against West Indies on Friday, when the two teams meet in the second of the three-match series at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. India are 1-0 ahead having recorded a comprehensive 6-wicket victory on Wednesday night in the first match of the series, courtesy a brilliant performance on debut by their leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi and strong contributions from their key batsmen.
Once again, India exploited the West Indies’ shortcomings and incapabilities against spinners, with Bishnoi returning with 2/17 from his 4 overs while Chahal also providing plenty of headache to the visiting batsmen. Despite a brilliant 61 from West Indies vice captain Pooran, the visiting side failed to get to a score that they would have wished for after being asked to bat on a fresh pitch at the Eden Gardens.
Kyle Mayers was impressive on Wednesday night hitting 7 boundaries to score 31 from 24 balls, but the West Indies would want more from their batsmen as they have been repeatedly struggling to put on big runs against Indian bowlers on this trip.
The West Indies’ game-play in the shortest format is all about power hitting but batting against Indian bowlers, particularly the spinners, has proved to be a different challenge altogether and they have not able to bring out their best effort so far on this tour. The Caribbean side could do well by promoting their captain Kieron Pollard up in the batting line-up, given his experience of playing in Indian conditions and against these bowlers, who are certainly new to those in the middle order.
With the ball, West Indies were not too imposing given that they had very little to reply with when India captain Rohit turned up the heat at the start of the chase on Wednesday. Akeal Hosein remains the best bet for the visitors, whose fast bowlers will be particularly careful against delivery slower, short balls to the Indian batsmen with Suryakumar showing adept hands on more occasions than one.
India will be pleased with how they went about their job in the first match. Even though there was a minor blip in the form of three wickets falling in quick succession during the chase, the home team was able to get past the finish line with 7 balls to spare and plenty of wickets in hand.
The form of some of their batsmen, particularly V Kohlii, will continue to attract attention among the media and fans given that the former captain has had scores of 8. 18, 0 and 17 so far against West Indies, indicating a further decline in his form with the bat.
