In-form India set for stern test against T20 world champions

Overview
India v Windies
1st T20I
Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Sunday, 4 November, 19:00 local (13:30 GMT)

It's not just because the Windies are the reigning ICC Men's World T20 champions but also because they have a side packed with 20-over specialists. The likes of Darren Bravo, captain Carlos Brathwaite, Shimron Hetmyer and others were already there to make the batting line-up formidable. Kieron Pollard is in the Windies squad, but he will not be joined by fellow all-rounder Andre Russell as he the latter pulled out of the series with an injury on the eve of the first game.

And, in case anyone's forgotten, the last time Brathwaite played at Eden Gardens, the venue of the first T20I, he hit Ben Stokes for four consecutive sixes in the last over to win the Windies the ICC Men's World T20 2016 title.

That aside, the returns of Bravo and Denesh Ramdin as players with experience are likely to boost the batting line-up.

The in-form Hetmyer, who scored 259 runs in the five ODIs at a strike rate of 140 – the highest among all batsmen in the series (minimum 50 runs) – also seems to have turned a corner with his fearless batting and aggressive approach against spin.

They could have been bolstered further by the presence of Evin Lewis at the top of the order, but the left-handed batsman withdrew from the limited-overs leg of the series owing to personal reasons. However, that gap at the top, made larger by Chris Gayle's absence from the squad, will be made up for to some extent by Pollard, an Indian Premier League veteran and T20 heavyweight.

Assisting him with the ball will be Oshane Thomas and Obed McCoy, but the Windies won't have the services of Ashley Nurse either, who was injured during the ODIs. Still, in a format they are most accustomed to, and with the big-hitting prowess they possess, they are likely to pose a tough challenge to the hosts.

For India, it will life without MS Dhoni, who was dropped from the T20 side for the first time since he made his mark as a top-level cricketer. With Virat Kohli rested too, the onus will be on seniors like Rohit Sharma, the stand-in captain, and Shikhar Dhawan, his opening partner, to guide the fresh faces in the team.

Those include Krunal Pandya, the older brother of Hardik Pandya, who is still recovering from injury. Pandya senior has been rewarded for some good shows in white-ball cricket over the past couple of years and also some recent good from with the ball – he has picked up 15 wickets in his last 10 List A matches.

In addition to being a left-arm spinner, Pandya is also a potent lower-order hitter and might be slotted in the same positions as Hardik – No.6 or 7 – for the finishers' role.

Also coming in is Shahbaz Nadeem, a more classical left-arm spinner. With 89 wickets from 109 T20s, Nadeem is no stranger to the rigours of the format and has plenty of IPL experience behind him.

Supporting Pandya and Nadeem will the front-line Indian spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal as well as fast bowlers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah. Rishabh Pant will take the gloves in the absence of Dhoni and will restart his T20I career, having last played one in March in the tri-nation series in Sri Lanka, when Dhoni was rested.

Khaleel Ahmed has been given a go as well, and so have Shreyas Iyer, the top-order batsman, and Washington Sundar, the all-rounder.

Key players

Rohit Sharma (India): With two centuries in the ODI series, Sharma comes into the T20s as the in-form batsman for India. At the top of the order, he will look to forge a successful partnership with Dhawan and look to lead the side with aplomb too.

**Shimron Hetmyer (Windies):**Hetmyer is a middle-order dasher. He bats at No.4 and is perfectly capable of knocking the ball around as well as going big against both spin and pace, as he showed in the ODIs. India will be wary.

Conditions

It's not winters yet in Kolkata and temperatures as high as 32ºC can be expected with a relatively high humidity. However, it is expected to cool down to 23ºC after sunset. Eden has a lush green outfield, and if the ball passes the inner ring, it is is most likely to reach the boundary.

Squads

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Khaleel Ahmed, Umesh Yadav, Shahbaz Nadeem

**Windies:**Carlos Brathwaite (c), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, Obed McCoy, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Kieron Pollard, Rovman Powell, Denesh Ramdin, Sherfane Rutherford, Oshane Thomas