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Big Picture – Can West Indies seal the series?
West Indies, 2-0 up with three T20Is remaining, have the chance to win their first series of two or more matches against India, in any format, since 2016. They also have the chance to complete back-to-back T20I series victories for the first time since 2017. If they manage to pull it off, it will be a massive confidence boost for West Indies, who will be co-hosting a T20 World Cup less than a year from now.
Whether they can seal the series on Tuesday may come down once again to how they tackle India’s spinners, which they did quite well in the first two matches.
Form guide
West Indies WWWLW (Last five completed T20Is; most recent first)
India LLWWL
In the spotlight – Hardik Pandya and Kyle Mayers
India captain Hardik Pandya has exuded cool-guy energy despite the losses. “It is what it is,” he said, rather philosophically, after their loss on Sunday. While he’s found his bowling rhythm, his batting has not reached its usual level, and he’s also been under scrutiny for his tactics on the field. In the first T20I, Hardik gave the last over of the powerplay to Axar Patel, despite the in-form and left-handed Pooran’s presence in the middle; that over ended up costing 14 runs. In the second T20I, Hardik did not bowl out his best bowler – Yuzvendra Chahal – during a nail-biting chase when West Indies’ lower order was struggling. The constant presence of left-handers at the crease also meant Axar ended up playing as a pure batter in the second T20I, after being taken for 22 runs in two overs in the first game.
Team news – Will India bring in Yashasvi Jaiswal?
The hosts are unlikely to make too many changes to their winning combination.
West Indies (probable): 1 Brandon King, 2 Kyle Mayers, 3 Johnson Charles (wk), 4 Nicholas Pooran, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Rovman Powell (capt), 7 Jason Holder, 8 Romario Shepherd, 9 Akeal Hosein, 10 Alzarri Joseph, 11 Obed McCoy
India (probable): 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Ishan Kishan/ Yashasvi Jaiswal, 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Hardik Pandya (capt), 6 Sanju Samson (wk), 7 Axar Patel, 8 Kuldeep Yadav, 9 Yuzvendra Chahal, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Mukesh Kumar
Pitch and conditions
The surface for the second T20I at Providence Stadium was a slow one, and it’s likely to remain that way; expect spin and slower balls to have their say once more. The weather is expected to be cloudy with a chance of rain in the afternoon.
Quotes
“We decided on just looking at some players’ workload [for the West Indies T20I series], that we wanted to make sure that they get enough break time and manage them. I definitely fall in that [category] as well. There is another reason to come here [to the USA]. Because you know the World Cup is coming. In June [2024], there will be the T20 World Cup happening in this part of the world. So I’m pretty sure everyone is excited.”
India’s regular captain Rohit Sharma during an event in the USA
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