The India vs West Indies T20 International series will be played under different circumstances from the One-Day Internationals that India won at a canter, 3-0. Those three games were played before the IPL Auction 2022, and all the players who had been released by their franchises were on tenterhooks about their prospects. But now, with the purses decided, all of them can relax and look to attend to their performances, for the IPL and the ICC T20 World Cup to follow soon after.
The West Indies didn’t really pose a challenge in the ODI series, but if there is any format where they can be a threat, it will be in the T20Is.
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No one really know why some sides are better at some things than the other. It could be that rich cricketing culture of the West Indies has been moulded by the demands of the times, with their Test and ODI credentials now taking a back seat to their penchant for instant cricket.
For India too, things have changed. Earlier, the international calendar used to be punctuated by the domestic engagements, which held equal priority. But now, with burgeoning franchise cricket demands, domestic matches have become of an ‘if’ instead of ‘when’.
But such are the demands of the sport nowadays, one assumes.
India will hopefully need to be at their best in the T20s. The Caribbean batting was underwhelming at best in the ODIs, but they have the T20 credentials polished with a good 3-2 win over England at home.
With the Eden Gardens in Kolkata hosting all three games, one can assume that the teams winning the toss would like to bat first.
The first reason is that, with the matches starting at 7.30 p.m., the ground conditions won’t be that much different once the sun goes down, which is about 5 p.m. there.
Plus, Kolkata has not become as warm as it usually is at this time of the year, with the northern parts of West Bengal having reported snowfall less than a week ago. So, the cool breeze, always a thing here, will affect the presence of dew on the ground.
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Essentially, the conditions for bowling may be identical, with a bit of swing always on the cards under the circumstances. So, bat first and put the runs on board makes sense.
India had been opting to chase most of the time in the recent past, but the think tank was different in those days.
For the West Indies, the fitness of Kieron Pollard will be a question mark, while India have already replaced KL Rahul, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar with Ruturaj Gaikwad, Deepak Hooda and Kuldeep Yadav.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (capt), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Surya Kumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (vc/wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldip Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Deepak Hooda.
West Indies: Kieron Pollard (capt), Nicholas Pooran (vice-capt), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Dominic Drakes, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Brandon King, Rovman Powell, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Karl Mayers, Hayden Walsh Jr
