1st T20I: India's find for perfect XI begins vs forgotten world champions West Indies
After thrashing West Indies 2-0 in the ODI series and clean-sweeping them 3-0 in the T20I series in August this year, India are yet again ready to tackle the West Indies in 3 T20Is and as many ODIs to end their home season on a high.
West Indies were a force to reckon with in the T20I format but that has now become a 'once upon a time' story. They were crowned the world champions in 2016 and a powerhouse in the shortest format of the game. However, that is not the case anymore and there are numbers to prove so.
Of the 9 T20I matches they have played this year the West Indies have managed to win just one and that was against Afghanistan. They have been whitewashed by England and India and lost 2-1 to Afghanistan last month. Against India, their records have been equally dismal.
Against Virat Kohli's Men in Blue, the West Indies have not tasted victory in their last 6 T20I meetings. There is more. Since June 2016, the defending T20I champions' win percentage (30.77) is second from the bottom among all the full members of ICC and are placed only above Zimbabwe. India, on the other hand, are well placed at third (64.00) on this table.
In the zone and Ready for Match no.1 😎💪 #TeamIndia #INDvWI pic.twitter.com/hI7l6aJkkn
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 5, 2019
Diving deeper into the statistics makes matters only worse. Among all the teams in T20I international cricket, West Indies have recorded the worst balls per dismissal (14.2) and worst runs per wicket ratio (15.10).
Nonetheless, West Indies will look to brighten up things for themselves with a new captain at the helm in the form of an experienced Kieren Pollard. Though India would be clear favourites in the T20I series, but the visitors could derive some confidence from the fact that India are struggling to find consistency in the shortest format of the game.
India and their T20I struggle
India have proved their mettle in the Test format and also in the 50-over game but the T20I format, arguably, have been their Achilles heel, given they are ranked 5th in the world in the shortest format. In the past one year, India have managed to win just 3 T20I series out of the 7 they have played since November 2018. This also includes two successive series defeat against New Zealand and Australia.
However, Virat Kohi dismissed India's lowly standing in the T20I rankings, saying that the team is yet to field its strongest eleven in the shortest format. And thus it will be interesting to see how they fetch against West Indies as the captain himself said that they would be playing their strongest XI going into the World Cup next year.
Captain @imVkohli on what @imjadeja brings to the table 🗣️🗣️ #TeamIndia #INDvWI @Paytm pic.twitter.com/84PGRwO1FZ
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 5, 2019
Virat Kohli has reappeared in the side after being rested for the T20I series against Bangladesh. In the fast bowling unit, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami have returned to the squad to further boost the attack. On the batting front, Sanju Samson and Manish Pandey have come into the side after successful outings in the domestic T20 tournament but the conundrum is to fit them into the playing XI.
Stats
Yuzvendra Chahal needs 3 more wickets to become the highest wicket-taker for India in the T20Is. With 50 wickets in T20I, the leggie is currently behind Ravichandran Ashwin (52) and Jasprit Bumrah (51).
Rohit Sharma is just one hit away from becoming the first Indian away to smash 400 international sixes across all formats.
Tight security in Hyderabad
In order to avoid any untoward incidents during the match day on Friday, a series of unprecedented measures have been taken up at Uppal cricket stadium for the smooth run of the opening T20I. Total of 1800 police personals, including elite anti-terror squad of Telangana police, have been deployed to guard the stadium and manage the security.
In and around the stadium, a total of 300 CCTV cameras are being installed, including the places at vehicle check points, parking places to cover the entire area while a joint command and control room is also established to monitor all the CCTV footages for taking immediate action.
Squads for T20Is:
India: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma, Sanju Samson, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer, Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Deepak Chahar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
West Indies: Fabian Allen, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Kieron Pollard (c), Nicholas Pooran, Denesh Ramdin, Sherfane Rutherford, Lendl Simmons, Hayden Walsh Jr, Kesrick Williams.
Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/cricket/story/india-vs-west-indies-1st-t20i-preview-hyderabad-virat-kohli-kieron-pollard-1625680-2019-12-06
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