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India vs West Indies, 1st T20I: MS Dhoni and co. look to vanquish world champions

Dynamics of the game change as we enter a different format. Different captains, colourful jerseys and jam-packed stadiums, this weekend India and West Indies will play two T2OIs at Lauderhill, Florida.

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Kohli final
Virat Kohli will play a key role against West Indies in two-T20I series © Getty Images

Dynamics of the game change as we enter a different format. Defensive strokes will be replaced by fours and sixes. Twos will be converted into threes. Longs spells will be reduced to a four-over quota. There will be edge-of-the-seat thrillers. Different captains, colourful jerseys and jam-packed stadiums, this weekend India and West Indies will play two T2Os at Lauderhill, Florida (USA). MS Dhoni, India’s captain since the inaugural edition of ICC World T20, will battle with Carlos Brathwaite, West Indies’ newly appointed captain. The two swaggering teams are all in readiness to set the USA on fire with some top-drawer cricket. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: India vs West Indies, 1st T20I, Lauderhill

India made some surprising changes in the squad, dropping Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh, the duo that helped India chase 51 off 30 to whitewash Australia for the first time in their own den early in 2016. Nonetheless, their performance has been in a downward spiral ever since. Thus, drafting the in-form KL Rahul, Mohammad Shami and others was fair and square.

All in all, it has been a good year for India in the shortest format. They clinched the Asia Cup T20 2016, reached the semi-final of ICC World T20 2016 and then a 2-1 win against Zimbabwe.

But this is a different contest, as they will lock horns with the T20 champions, the same team that got the better of them in the semi-final. Hence, India will look to avenge the loss, marking their dominance in the United States.

The likes of Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane were rested for India’s tour of Zimbabwe, giving an opportunity for the youngsters to boasts of their skills at the international level. This time the veterans are back and so has the line-up conundrum.

The question is who will bat at what position.

Dhawan was dropped in the playing XI in the semi-final, following an inconsistent performance. Rahane opened with Rohit and scored a crisp 40-run knock with Kohli, at the other end, and batted sensibly by running hard between the wickets and giving most of the strike to the India’s vice-captain in shorter formats.

But, with only five specialist batsmen in the squad, Dhawan and Rohit will have to open, with Kohli at No. 3, followed by Rahane and Rahul (eventually depends on the match situation).

As a matter of fact, Rahane has played a few vital knocks at No. 4, especially his masterful 79 against South Africa in ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. He has the technique to do both: anchor the innings and score runs at a brisk rate. If the top order fails to come good, Rahane’s resilience will be handy to take India out of the woods. Also read: Celebrated teams, flamboyant cricketers, shortest form of cricket: India, West Indies set to dazzle at Florida

On the other hand, Rahul has been in an ominous touch of late. Scoring heaps of runs in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016 and then continuing his blistering form in India’s tour of Zimbabwe, his addition in the playing XI will only boost India’s batting. Originally a top-order batsman, he can go all guns blazing in the middle order and his stunning performance in IPL 2016 is evidence to the fact.

This leaves Dhoni at No. 6. In fact, it’s an ideal position for a finisher like him. For years, time and again, he has won many a match despite being at crucial junctures. He has plundered 1,069 runs at 35.63 in 71 matches. Though the sheen has worn off a little, his presence and experience will help India put the T20 champions on the back-foot. In addition, his captaincy skills need no introduction.

India have selected two all-rounders in Ravindra Jadeja (slow left-arm orthodox) and Stuart Binny (medium pacer). However, with Ravichandran Ashwin already at India’s disposal, only either of them will get a nod.

Considering the previous matches played at Lauderhill, its track assists the spinners more than the pacers, giving Jadeja an edge over Binny. Moreover, compared to Binny, Jadeja can score runs at a brisk rate.

India have four pacers in the squad: Mohammad Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Umesh Yadav.

Bhuvneshwar, especially, has been at his lethal best this year. With 23 wickets in 17 matches, he was the highest wicket-taker in IPL 2016, eventually winning the Purple Cap. Like Rahul, he worked hard and made the necessary changes in his technique. Even in the third Test against West Indies at St Lucia, he bagged a five-for with his ferocious swing bowling.

Shami, on the other hand, is making a comeback to the shorter format after his injury. In fact, the way he performed in the Test series proved his prodigious hunger to excel. His numbers in the shorter formats are staggering. In 47 ODIs, he has scalped 87 wickets at 24.89, and in 4 T20s, he has picked up five wickets at 25. With his sheer pace and swing, he will pose a threat to the opposition in the mandatory powerplay.

All the same, with Bumrah cementing his place, choosing a second pacer will give a selection headache to the management. Whether Dhoni will prefer Bhuvneshwar over Shami or he will go for three-seamer attack is a question only time will tell. Also read: Great advertisement for T20Is in USA, but cricket will take centre stage

All in all, India feature a strong team, but West Indies boast of a stronger team. Their cricketers play in all T20 leagues, be it Caribbean Premier League (CPL), IPL, Big Bash League (BBL), PSL (Pakistan Super League), Ram Slam, among others. They live and breathe the format, and have undoubtedly acquired mastery in it.

They have power-hitters, all-rounders and a mystery spinner. In short, they cover all the bases, making India’s task even tougher.

Yes, India have stalwarts like Dhoni, Kohli, Ashwin, to name a few, but when pitted against the might of West Indies’ line-up, they will have to take the bull by its horn and fire on all cylinders.

Squad:

MS Dhoni (c & wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Stuart Binny, Jasprit Bumrah, Shikhar Dhawan, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Ajinkya Rahane, Lokesh Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav

(Kaustubh S. Mayekar, a reporter at CricketCountry, played cricket at U-16 level. Like his idol Rahul Dravid, he often shadow-practises cricket shots. His Twitter handle is @kaumedy_)

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