India vs West Indies: 2nd Test Preview

In one of the extreme forms of the game, the battle of countries resumes once again in the Land of the Caribbean. But what can we expect?

If we take a sneak peek in the past, we see the Carribeans ruling the game in terms of Test Series. Out of 82 games played between the two nations before the ongoing series, India just manged to win 10 games whereas the Caribbeans managed to win 30.

WHAT DOES PAST REVEAL?

The statistics show that it has been difficult for the Indians to win a series against the West Indians especially when playing on the Caribbean Land. But the fact is, this is just history. Both the squads hardly share any members with the previous ones. This means that the competition is fresh again, the past hardly matters now. But The Windies want to take their records further and Indians want to make up for the lag.

WHAT HAPPENED RECENTLY?

In one of the low scoring matches played recently, which hardly lasted for 4 days, the Indians showed that it is time to change the statistics. Indians managed to grab a win by 63 runs which is quite a number when the total runs scored in the match was 933. It could be seen that the new players struggled to bat in the first innings & only the experienced players Rahul Dravid, Suresh Raina & Harbhajan Singh helped India to achieve a respectable total.In the second innings, the story repeated but only Dravid lived upto his name “The Wall” to score a brilliant century in the toughest of conditions possible. For the Windies, no miraculous batting could be seen by any of the players. As far as bowling was concerned, the pitch clearly favoured the fast & medium-fast bowlers and there was hardly any feast for spinners. Sharma & P. Kumar grabbing 6 , Edwards getting 5 makes the picture clearer.

WHAT DO WE EXPECT NEXT?

What do you expect in Caribbean Land during June/July? Rains? I am not trying to be metaphorical as it is hardly raining 4s and 6s in the Caribbean. What I am talking about is the actual rains. It has been drizzling everyday in West Indies which is not a very good sign when you are expecting good Cricket. But as a sign of relief, Kensington Oval, Barbados has a good system to drain out water which works for the worst conditions possible. The rains are posing a threat to their own countrymen as Windies are desperate to make a comeback in the series as they are already 1 down. There is plenty of chance that Rains interrupt play and full 5 days of cricket would not be possible which is an indication towards a Draw. For the Windies, Brendon Nash has been dropped but as a relief, Marlon Samuels comes in. West Indies really need to worry as the pitch is relatively easier which gives India an advantage. But as far as India is concerned, except Dravid & Raina, the top order has failed to make a mark. Much more is expected from Kohli, Mukund and Vijay. For the Windies, Chanderpaul & Sarwan are expected to get the team through.

WHAT IS TEAMS’ STRATEGY?

The rains are not desired by any of the sides as Windies want to make a comeback and Indians want to improve their statistics. But as of now, the teams are relaxing as rains would not allow for any practice sessions. The major concern for India is to decide on 2 pace-2 spin or 3 pace-1spin strategy. There are chances of Munaf Patel showing up in the test. The bowling for West Indies lies in the hands of Pacers and Medium Pacers and Captain Sammy doing a good job with the ball.

Overall a good game can be expected as both sides are desperate to pull through only if rains do not interrupt the fun.