IND v WI: 1st T20i PREVIEW

Team India has won 15 t20is out of the 18 games they have played since the t20 wc debacle. They are a different force in bilaterals and there is a reason they have not lost any bilateral series in the last 3 years except for the one in SL where they were struggling to put 11 players on the field due to covid. They have been absolutely ruthless in the format and there wont be any surprises if they continue their winning streak against WI. Ind have lost only 1 game in the last 4 bilateral series against WI. Going into the 1st game, Ind have few selection headaches. This is despite 3 - 4 main players being absent from the squad. In one way it speaks volumes of the bench strength. Shreyas Iyer who has scored over 700 runs at a sr of 150 since the end of 2019 may struggle to get a game in the series due to his recent struggles against the short pitch deliveries and poor outing against SA and Eng. It would to be interesting to see if Deepak Hooda makes the cut. In that case Ind have to drop Kishan and open with Pant. R Ashwin is back in the t20i side for the 1st time after WC. The no 7 spot could go to Axar Patel if Ravindra Jadeja is still unfit. In the pace department, Arshdeep Singh should get a chance given his brilliant exhibition of death bowling throughout the IPL.

Shimron Hetmyer makes a return to the side. WI are dearly missing someone like Ewin Lewis at the top and the top order of King, Mayers and Brooks doesn't inspire much confidence though they got few runs against Bangladesh and were decent in the ODI series. The side is filled with medium pace bowling all rounders in Holder, Paul, Shepherd, Smith, Drakes and Powell. They all can hit the ball hard and long but are limited in ability against quality bowling, especially the leg spinners who will look to exploit the glaring weakness of the lower order. A lot will depend on how WI openers play out Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. He was the main reason Ind were so succesful in tighetining Eng's middle order after delivering early blows. If they play him out and don't lose initial wkts, then WI could look for a 200+ total with Hetmyer, Pooran and Powell in the middle and end overs.

Probable XI

India

Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshal Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh

West Indies

Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Shamarh Brooks, Nicholas Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Romario Shephard, Jason Holder, Keemo Paul, Akeal Hosein, Obed McCoy.

Venue

Brian Lara Stadium, Tarouba, Trinidad

STATS - T20

Total matches - 3
Matches won bowling first - 3

Average 1st Inns scores - 130
Average 2nd Inns scores - 131

Highest total recorded - 156/7 (19.5 Ov) by RSAW vs WIW
Highest score chased - 156/7 (19.5 Ov) by RSAW vs WIW

Head to Head

Overall: Ind leads by 13 -6
Batting 1st: Ind leads by 6-4
Batting 2nd: Ind leads by 7 -2

In WI: Played 4, Ind -2, WI - 2
Last 5 T20s: Ind leads by 4 -1

Match Ups

Pooran v Bhuvi: 53/1 at 132 sr
Pooran v Harshal: 53/1 at 143 sr

Hetmyer v Jadeja: 47/1 at 190 sr
Hetmyer v Harshal: 34/0 at 136 sr

Rohit v Holder: 40/0 at 166 sr
Pant v Holder: 56/0 at 147 sr

King v Bhuvi: 14/2 at 66 sr

Form Update
(last 5 innings)

Key players & Fantasy Picks

Captain and Vice Captain

Nicholas Pooran: He has scored 292 runs in his last 5 t20is and was the top scorer of the t20i series held earlier this year with 184 runs. He was also in great touch during the ODI series and scored 142 runs in the 3 ODIs.

Shimron Hetmyer: He scored the most runs in death overs in 2021 and 2022 season of the IPL and adapted brilliantly to the new role of finisher. Since 2021, he has scored 351 runs at the end at a SR of 202 with 28 sixes and 44 avg.

Hardik Pandya: Since his return from the injury, he has put a brilliant case for being one of the finest all rounders in the t20 format. With captaincy and leading his IPL team to a title victory he has emerged as a more mature player. 487 runs in 2022 IPL and Man of the match performance in the final with the ball, 275 runs at a SR of 151 in last 10 t20is and a 4 fer against Eng are his overall nos in the last few months.

Budget picks
(Fantasy rating - 8/8.5 points)

Ishan Kishan: He has scored the most no of runs for India in Powerplay this year.

Wild Card:

Obed McCoy was one of the best bowlers in death overs in IPL. He has been brilliant in that role in the past 12 months with good outings against Aus and SA. There is a great possibility of him picking few wkts at the death.

Fantasy XI