Preview of third ODI of India v West Indies

The third ODI between India and West Indies will be played on Friday at Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet in St Lucia and it does look like the two teams have a fight on their hands. The series is tied at one game apiece and this article previews the third match of the series.

India:
M.S.Dhoni had openly accepted that they – and this would include the seniors and the team management – had misread the pitch and did not play according to what it demanded. One does not know how the pitch will play yet, but there have been instances of some moisture in the track in the early part of the inning. Yet, Team India may want to continue with their tactic of batting first and piling on the runs.

However, to do that, they will need Gautam Gambhir to afford the Indians a start that he has had provided in the past. The combination of bounce and swing has been his undoing, and despite the temptation, Dhoni may not yet dislodge him from the opening slot. However, Rohit Sharma could just be shuffled down the order given his poor form – or shot selection – and Yuvraj Singh brought up.
Having said that, the likes of S.Badrinath and Murali Vijay are still waiting in the ranks, as is Abhishek Nayar, and there it would be a reasonable anticipation if one thought that one of them would get a chance in the game.

With Ravindra Jadeja’s footwork all over the place, his spot looks to be the most in bother, as the all-rounder Nayar breathes down his throat.

The bowling could remain the same, with Praveen Kumar continuing to feature as the third seamer in the side.

West Indies:
The West Indian batting has been a revelation in the series, having played excellently in both their forays with the bat. Runako Morton has surprised many a critic after the decision to include him in the line-up had been questioned due to his off-field disciplinary issues, and Shivnaraine Chanderpaul has regained his batting touch after a shoddy performance or two in the World T20. Chris Gayle continues to blast away, and Ramnaresh Sarwan had a decent outing in the first game that could have swung their way had he stayed on longer.
Rather surprisingly, it is their bowling in the second ODI that managed to stun the Indian batsmen. With the batsmen expecting the ball to be pitched in the bowler’s half of the wicket, Ravi Rampaul – having replaced Lionel Baker earlier – managed to pitch it up and get the cherry to swing, in turn finding the edge of the bat more than once.

However, the West Indian bowling is rather weak after their first three bowlers have been negotiated, in fact, without the surprise factor of Rampaul, the bowling could look a suspect against a reasonably strong Indian batting.

The last game played on this ground had seen the English team pile up 172 in the restricted 29 overs, and then had Andrew Flintoff scalp a hat-trick en route his best figures of 5/19 to win it for his team. The West Indies had looked good at one stage, but collapsed rather meekly after Flintoff came onto bowl.

The hosts will look to avoid a deja-vu!