India vs West Indies: 3 changes that India could make for the second T20

The 1st T20 match between India and West Indies at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata was quite competitive and fiercely fought by the two respective sides. It was too close to call as the West Indies bowlers gave a tough fight and made it difficult for the Indian batsmen to chase down even a low total of 110 runs. The temperament of Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, and Krunal Pandya enabled India to complete the run chase in the end.

The Indian bowlers especially the spinners did a wonderful job of restricting the West Indies to a total of 109 in 20 overs. The Indian batsmen, on the other hand, made a mountain out of a molehill to chase the total. Some batsmen played reckless shots and hence put pressure on others.

For the next match of the series, the Indian team management should take some tough calls and rectify the errors made by the team in this match. Let us have a look at the 3 changes India should make in the 2nd T20 against the West Indies:

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#3 Bhuvneshwar Kumar for Umesh Yadav

Bhuvneshwar Kumar missed the first T20 against the West Indies due to a gastric complaint and did not accompany the team inside the stadium. Rather, he opted to rest and recuperate and be fit for the second T20 which is to be played at Lucknow. Because of this, India went into the 1st T20 with the pace attack consisting of Umesh Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, and Jasprit Bumrah.

Despite restricting the West Indies to a total of just 109 in twenty overs, Umesh Yadav was quite expensive in the 19th over when he gave away 16 runs due to missing the yorker length repeatedly and didn't change his pace to make it difficult for the batsmen to time the ball. On the other hand, Bumrah and Khaleel were quite economical, varied their pace and were quite successful in restricting the batsmen in the death overs.

Hence, Bhuvneshwar Kumar who is a well-experienced campaigner for India should replace Umesh Yadav in the next T20.

#2 Chahal for Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan has had a poor series so far against the West Indies. He has been out of form, is not moving his feet well and has struggled against the West Indies seamers. He has got out 3 times on the bowling of Thomas in the same fashion. He has failed to adapt to his monstrous pace and hence has virtually become his bunny.

The explosive opener has been struggling for form lately

KL Rahul should move up the order to open the innings in place of Dhawan. With Krunal Pandya showing in the 1st T20 that he is no slouch with the bat after scoring a cameo of 21 runs of 9 balls, the dropping of Dhawan for Chahal will not affect the depth of the Indian batting order. Chahal, on the other hand, has established a good partnership with Kuldeep Yadav in the limited overs format for India. Having picked up 42 wickets in 26 T20s at an average of 18.98 and economy rate of 7.85, it would be imprudent to leave Chahal out again in the 2nd T20 as he adds more variety to the Indian bowling attack.

#1 Shreyas Iyer for Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant gave a disappointing display in the first T20 against the West Indies yesterday. Despite India needing just 110 runs and having lost 2 early wickets in quick succession, Rishabh Pant got out by playing a rash shot and hence got India into trouble.

In order to stay in the Indian team, Pant needs to control his aggression and play as per the situation. Playing always across the line of the ball is a bad habit which he has been guilty of. Hence, Pant needs to improve his mentality in order to remain in the team.

On the other hand, Shreyas Iyer is a calm and composed player who has been scoring a lot of runs for India A side. Despite being in top form, he was not included in the starting XI yesterday. Hence, Rohit and Shastri should consider picking Iyer in the 2nd T20 instead of Pant.