Seeking Perfect 10

Chennai, December 14

The Indian team, seeking a 10th consecutive bilateral One-day International series win, will be the overwhelming favourites to beat West Indies tomorrow in the first ODI of their three-match series.

With the city receiving rains over the last 24 hours, the weather just might be a factor in tomorrow’s Day/Night match.

India will be without medium-pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, ruled out after his sports hernia symptoms resurfaced, and Shikhar Dhawan, who is yet to recover from the injury he suffered during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament. Mumbai’s Shardul Thakur has replaced Bhuvneshwar in the squad.

Virat Kohli’s men have the momentum after winning the T20I series with a splendid batting performance in Mumbai, with openers Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul and the captain himself standing out. Rahul is likely to open in the ODI series as well, and Mayank Agarwal — who replaced the injured Dhawan in the squad — is set to sit out.

Pant focus

Yet again, the focus will be on wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, who has been under fire for his unimpressive performances in both his playing roles. He gets another chance to justify the faith shown in him by Kohli.

The wrist-spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav last played together in the World Cup. With the Chepauk pitch expected to aid slow bowlers, there is a possibility that the Kul-Cha combo would be back in action here.

The experienced Mohammed Shami and Deepak Chahar will most probably form the pace attack.

Lewis worry

The visitors will be hoping that big-hitting opener Evin Lewis, who suffered an injury while fielding in the Mumbai T20I, would be able to take part in the ODIs. As of today, his injury was being assessed.

The West Indian batsmen, who can be irresistible in T20Is thanks to their ultra-aggressive approach, would need to focus on staying in during the ODIs. Assistant coach Roddy Estwick has said they batsmen need to focus on rotating the strike to do well. They would need to not only attack right at the start, but to also keep wickets in hand to accelerate in late overs.

Shimron Hetmyer and Nicholas Pooran have showed their abilities in the shortest format and need to display the same in the ODIs. All-rounder Roston Chase is likely to figure in the XI, and he would bring stability to a line-up with several power-hitters.

Sheldon Cottrell will lead the bowling attack, and the onus would be on him to strike early in order to thwart the likes of Rohit, Kohli and Rahul.

Skipper Kieron Pollard, who has a rather modest record in the ODIs, will have to lead by example and provide the thrust in the slog overs. — PTI

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Iyer’s chance at No. 4?

Shreyas Iyer, who has made good use of the opportunities that have come his way, is likely to be slotted at No. 4. The No. 4 spot has been in focus for at least two years now, with several players being tried there in the run-up to the World Cup.

After the 2015 World Cup, India have tried 13 batsmen at that troubled slot. The No. 4 spot was the weak link in India’s strong batting chain in this year’s World Cup. Iyer has played seven innings for India, but only at No. 3 (3 times) and No. 5 (4 times) positions.

Now could be his chance to make this position his own.

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Unlucky 13 at No. 4

The 13 who have figured at No. 4 after the 2015 World Cup:

Ambati Rayudu (16 matches), MS Dhoni (12), Ajinkya Rahane (11), Yuvraj Singh (10), Dinesh Karthik (9), H Pandya (7), Manish Pandey (8), Rishabh Pant (7), KL Rahul (5), Vijay Shankar (2), Manish Tiwary (3), Virat Kohli (3), Kedar Jadhav