India vs West Indies: Team India’s predicted XI for Thiruvananthapuram T20I - Possible change in bowling department
Virat Kohli struck a blistering 94 to power India to a six-wicket win after chasing down 208 against the West Indies in the opening Twenty20 international on Friday.
India will aim to seal the three-match series when they take on the West Indies in the second T20I at the Greenfield Stadium on Sunday. Virat Kohli smashed a masterly 94 not out to fashion a successful chase as India beat West Indies by six wickets in the first T20I on Friday. Kohli hit six sixes and accelerated just when the team needed to help India chase down a 208-run victory target with eight balls to spare at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. West Indies scored 207/5, but India managed to chase it down with eight balls to spare.
Rohit Sharma
It was a rare off day for Rohit Sharma as he failed to score big in the first T20I encounter. The Indian cricket team opener started the innings well but he was dismissed for 8 by Khary Pierre. He will be looking to change that when he takes the field in Thiruvananthapuram and a big knock will do wonders for his confidence.
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KL Rahul
With Shikhar Dhawan missing out due to injury, Rahul had a good chance to establish his place as an opener and his knock of 62 off 40 balls was exactly what he needed at the moment. He will once again open the innings with Rohit Sharma and he will be looking to continue his brilliant run of form.
Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli smashed a masterly 94 not out to fashion a successful chase in the first T20I encounter and his partnerships with KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant was exactly what the Indian batting line-up in their preparation for the T20 World Cup.
Shreyas Iyer
After a good show in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Tournament, Iyer was looking in great form but was unable to capitalise on it in the first T20I. With the right-hander quickly establishing himself as the regular choice for the No.4 position, he will be looking to play a solid knock in Thiruvananthapuram.
Rishabh Pant
18 runs off 9 balls - It was a classic Rishabh Pant innings as he started brilliantly with two sixes and then ended up gifting his wicket to Sheldon Cottrell. The youngster is under a lot of pressure and with Sanju Samson breathing down his neck, he will have to come back with some good performances to justify his selection.
Shivam Dube
There was not much to do for Dube in the first T20I as he did not face a single delivery with the bat and he bowled only one over where he conceded 13 runs. He may have a bigger role to play in Thiruvananthapuram and a good show in this series can make him a solid contender ahead of T20 World Cup.
Ravindra Jadeja
Jadeja ended up with just one wicket but he bowled brilliantly and was able to keep the batsmen in check to an extent. The all-rounder is also a good batting option in the lower middle-order and when the situation comes, he can a handy pinch-hitter for the team.
Washington Sundar
It was a horrible outing for Sundar in the field as he squandered two catching chances and ended up giving runs off misfields. However, he did take the wicket of Evin Lewis and he will certainly be looking to improve his show in the second T20I.
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Bhuvneshwar Kumar
The fast bowler remained wicketless in the first match and was also quite expensive against the destructive West Indies batting line-up. But he did get a couple of deliveries to swing and with this being his comeback series after injury, he will be hoping for a good show.
Mohammed Shami
Mohammed Shami had a brilliant show in the Test series against South Africa and Bangladesh with the fast bowler taking 13 wickets in 3 matches against South Africa and nine against Bangladesh. He is most likely to replace Deepak Chahar in the playing XI as the youngster ended up conceding 56 runs in the first T20I.
Yuzvendra Chahal
Chahal was once again the pick of the Indian bowlers in the first T20I as he finished with figures of 2/36 and with West Indies going great guns, it was the wrist spinner who was able to slow them down for a bit. He will surely be looking to continue his brilliant run of form and he can turn out to be a major asset for his side.
(With agency inputs)
