India desperate to restore parity against West Indies as second T20I looms

It was a questionable start for the Indian cricket team to the T20I series as their batters failed to put up a formidable show with the bat despite a brilliant start from their bowlers. As India gear up for the second T20I, it is imperative that they restore parity before the Islanders can pose a serious threat of an unassailable lead.

India may be inclined towards bringing in Yashasvi Jaiswal in place of a misfiring Sanju Samson as the wicket-keeping batter couldn’t add those crucial runs under the pump. There may also be a shuffle in the batting order for the Men in Blue after a shoddy display against the experienced bowling of West Indies.

The hosts would be confident coming into this fixture after a brilliant start to the series in the shortest format of the game. They would be hoping to replicate their feat in the opener which would help them maintain their tempo against India. The first battle may have caught the visitors off-guard but going by the strengths of the Indian side, it is just a matter of a few moments before they turn things around.

Venue Watch:

The Providence Stadium in Guyana has hosted 27 T20Is so far out of which 13 matches have been won batting first while 10 of the remaining fixtures have been won while chasing. It isn’t exactly a batting friendly surface as the average first innings score in the venue in the shortest format of the game is 122 while there is a steep slump in the second innings that witness the numbers dropping to a 93.

Head to head:

Matches played: 26

West Indies: 8

India: 17

Match Details:

Match: West Indies vs India, 2nd T20I

Venue: Providence Stadium, Guyana

Date: 6th August, 2023

Time: 8:00 PM IST

Squads:

West Indies:

Rovman Powell (c), Kyle Mayers (vc), Johnson Charles, Roston Chase, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Obed McCoy, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Oshane Thomas. 

India:

Hardik Pandya (C), Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Umran Malik, Mukesh Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh.