India vs WI, 3rd ODI: Loads of problems and plenty of lessons to learn for India

3. Allowing the late order and tail to wag

Nurse's all-round performance was the difference between the two teams

At one stage, the West Indies were 121 for 5 before Holder and Shai Hope put on 76 runs for the sixth wicket. Again, when the Windies were on 227 for 8, Nurse and Roach added 56 runs for the 9th wicket which was the turning point of the match. Nurse ended up scoring 40 ff 22 balls.

India have the perennial problem of always allowing the tailenders to make significant contributions. While the Indian tail contributes nothing with the bat, they merrily allow the opposition tail to flourish. This was witnessed right through the Test series in England.

Even in the first ODI against Windies, Roach and Bishoo added 44 runs for the 9th wicket. In the end, their contribution became insignificant due to the massive efforts of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. But there were enough alarm signs in the first ODI itself that this West Indies tail could bat, which were simply ignored by India.

The opposition tail wagging in any one of the matches is acceptable. But allowing the tail to wag in every match is a dangerous sign.

One way of tackling this problem is to finish off the overs of the spinners by the end of the 40th over. This would help the spinners to complete their quota of overs when in rhythm. Whatever extra wickets they take in the middle overs, would put additional pressure on the opposition.

Keeping a couple of overs of Chahal in reserve for the late order will backfire. Desperate heaves by the well-built bowlers against the spinners would fetch crucial runs for the opposition and would change the momentum of the game.