India looks to seal the series in the 3rd ODI against West Indies

Amit Mishra is congratulated by his captain Suresh Raina and the wicket keeper Parthiv Patel after taking the wicket of West Indies' opener Kirk Edwards in the 2nd ODI

The 3^rd ODI between West Indies and India will give the visitors a chance to win their first series since the World Cup triumph. The visitors will go all out to win this match, since it will give them the luxury to test a few other players who haven’t yet got a chance in this tour.

The omission of Chris Gayle and the absence of Dwayne Bravo and Ravi Rampaul, who have been rested for this ODI, will further dent the chances of the hosts in making a comeback in this series. The visitors however, will take confidence from the fact that they have been the better team throughout the tour.

The Indian batting line up looks settled with Shikhar Dhawan, Parthiv Patel, Rohith Sharma, Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli each making useful contributions in the two previous wins. The batting has come good in both the matches with different batsmen contributing each match. The more seasoned batsmen like Virat Kohli and Rohith Sharma have both brought intent and calmness into the proceedings and have handled the pressure really well.

The bowling department too, has done a good job in not leaking too many runs in the powerplay overs and forcing the opponents too play rash shots. The spinners have done well, with both Amit Mishra and Harbhajan Singh picking up a handful of wickets and also restricting the score. The pacers too did a good job and Munaf Patel, in particular proved to be too good for the West Indies batsmen. Skipper Suresh Raina, also deserves some credit for rotating his bowlers very well while also not overusing them

The woes of the West Indies batsmen continued in the 2^nd ODI too, after they kept losing wickets whenever they looked to accelerate. The West Indies batsmen were guilty of using up too many deliveries and losing their wickets when they looked to up their strike rate. Ramnaresh Sarwan has been the one batsman who has consistently performed well for the Windies, and they would be hoping for yet another good performance from him. Kieron Pollard’s big hitting would also come in handy if he gets going especially during the powerplay.

The bowling of West Indies lacks teeth to make early inroads in the Indian batting line up. Devendra Bishoo has impressed one and all with his leg spin. With Kemar Roach included in the squad in place of Ravi Rampaul, the team would hope he can turn things around for them in this series.

It would take an inspired bowling display from the Windies bowlers to keep their team in the competition. Otherwise, the Indian team looks all set to win their first series since the World Cup.

Probable Teams:

West Indies : Darren Sammy (capt), Carlton Baugh, Devendra Bishoo, Darren Bravo, Kirk Edwards, Danza Hyatt, Kemar Roach, Anthony Martin, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Lendl Simmons

India : Suresh Raina (capt), Subramaniam Badrinath, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Praveen Kumar, Amit Mishra, Munaf Patel, Parthiv Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Ishant Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin