Picking an all-time India-West Indies T20I playing 11 ft. Rohit Sharma, Chris Gayle

India and the West Indies share a deep history in cricket, with both nations coming into their own through sheer hard work and commitment of their players following a common colonial past.

The two teams first attracted the world's attention when they faced off in the final of the 1983 ODI World Cup. The Men in Blue famously won under all-rounder Kapil Dev's captaincy and started their journey towards becoming a world power.

The West Indies were the dominant force in world cricket back then, having already won the ODI World Cups in 1975 and 1979, and forging a world-beating side under the leadership of the legendary Sir Clive Lloyd.

Today, both these teams are known to excel in the shortest format of the game - T20Is - playing with a cavalier and often fearless approach that has their supporters waiting with bated breath for what is to come.

In an exercise in speculation - which we do not usually indulge in our daily business - we pick an all-time India-West Indies T20I playing XI here.

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Top-order batters: Rohit Sharma, Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli and Nicholas Pooran

The top order of the combined team will be made up of Rohit Sharma, Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, and Nicholas Pooran.

Sharma and Gayle will open the innings for this team, with fireworks expected to erupt every time either of these players gets going.

Kohli will come in at his usual No.3 position, from where he can either marshal a chase or even help his team set up a big total in the first innings. His versatility against both spin and pace will come in handy.

Pooran will add balance to this team with his exquisite range of strokes. His willingness to use the long handle when the occasion decrees it makes him a player who is in high demand across the world in this format of the game.

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Middle-order: Suryakumar Yadav, MS Dhoni (C and WK), Hardik Pandya, Dwayne Bravo

Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav - Source: Getty

Current India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav earns his place in this squad by being the nation's third-highest run-scorer in this format of the game behind Sharma and Kohli. He will come in with his 360-degree strokes at number five.

MS Dhoni, who will lead the team and also don the big gloves behind the stumps, will come in at number six, followed by pace-bowling all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Dwayne Bravo. Dhoni's finishing skills will be dearly needed.

Bravo and Pandya can interchange their positions at number seven and eight, with either of them coming in when the management feels them to bolster the batting unit with a high strike rate. Both players can hit gargantuan sixes.

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Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Akeal Hosein, Arshdeep Singh

Jasprit Bumrah, Akeal Hosein, and Arshdeep Singh will helm this team's bowling department, with the former expected to bowl with the new ball with his India teammate Singh. Both these players are known to be clinical with the new ball.

Dhoni can use Hosein either inside the powerplay - where he has proven his merit - or outside whenever the situation gets out of hand. The Windies' left-arm spinner is known for his accuracy while bowling tight lines.

While Hosein will be expected not to allow opposition batters to have an easy time with the bat, Pandya and Bravo too will chip in with the ball towards the middle stage of their bowling innings.

Both these bowlers, renowned for their off-cutters and sly changes of pace, will come in handy for Dhoni on pitches that are two-paced, and on which the ball does not come on as comfortably as the batters expect it to.