India vs West Indies, 2nd ODI: Preview, predicted XI, head-to-head stats, live streaming, weather forecast, and pitch report

West Indies pulled off a massive upset against India in Chennai as the men in maroon steamrolled the hosts without breaking a sweat to take a 1-0 lead in the series. If they win another one in Visakhapatnam, it will be the knockout punch in the 3-match series.

India, on the other hand, will be desperate to avoid a series defeat against a side which is 7 positions lower in the ICC rankings than them. India’s record in ODI cricket at home has been outstanding in the last few years and it will be slightly embarrassing if they go down against a young Caribbean side.

It was clear in Chennai that India’s team balance wasn’t right as they were struggling to get the overs out of their 5th bowler. That’s one of the key areas of concern that the Indian team management will have to address coming into this game.

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Fielding has been another issue for India this winter as they have dropped a lot of catches, some of which have proved to be really costly. They would want to reflect on that aspect of their game as well.

Match Details:

Date: December 18, 2019 (Wednesday)

Time: 01:30 PM (IST)

Venue: Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium, Visakhapatnam

Weather Forecast

The humidity will be really high in Visakhapatnam as it was in Chennai which means it won’t be easy for the batsmen to bat for a long period as they might lose a lot of fluid in the process resulting in cramps. However, the only respite in Visakhapatnam is that it might be a little windy. There are no signs of rain on the game day and it’s expected to be a full 50-over game.

Pitch Report

The Visakhapatnam pitch is generally a good batting track. The bounce is even and the batsmen can afford to play their shots on the rise, something that they couldn’t do in Chennai as the ball was sticking to the surface. It might be a little slow to start with, but the ball will skid onto the bat nicely under lights as the dew is likely to play a big role again. Both the teams would want to bat second.

Head-to-head stats

Total matches played: 129

India: 62

West Indies: 63

Tied: 2

No Result: 4

Probable XI:

India would like to have an extra bowler in the XI which means Shivam Dube might have to make way for Shardul Thakur. With Shardul in the line-up, the Indian captain Virat Kohli will have 5 full-time bowling options at his disposal which will make it easier for him to rotate his bowlers and put his game-plan in place properly.

India predicted XI: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav

West Indies should go with an unchanged XI. Although Sunil Ambris and Hayden Walsh didn’t have a great time in Chennai, they have already shown a few times in their short careers what they are capable of and the team management is likely to persist with the duo.

West Indies predicted XI: Sunil Ambris, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, Kieron Pollard (C), Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Keemo Paul, Sheldon Cottrell, Alzarri Joseph, Hayden Walsh

Live Broadcast and streaming details

The Star Sports network will telecast the 2nd ODI on four of its channels, Star Sports 1, Star Sports 1 HD, Star Sports Hindi and Star Sports Hindi 1. The live streaming of the match will be available on Hotstar.