3rd T20I Preview: India Aim Clean Sweep, Face Misfiring Windies In Chennai
Having sealed the series, India would now look to give their bench strength an opportunity before the tour of Australia.
Highlights
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India would now look to give their bench strength an opportunity
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The Windies will aim for a consolation win
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The final T20I will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai
India will be aiming to complete a clean sweep when they take on a misfiring Windies team in the third and final T20I at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday. Having sealed the series with a comprehensive win in the second T20I at Lucknow, India would now look to give their bench strength an opportunity before the tour of Australia. Ahead of the third T20I, the selectors rested Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav and wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav with Siddarth Kaul being added to the squad.
Captain Rohit Sharma was at his best in the Lucknow T20I but the other Indian batsmen haven't made much of a contribution. Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant among others would like to have a few more runs under the belt before the Australia tour. Dinesh Karthik played a calculated innings in the first match as the hosts chased down a modest target of 110.
With Bumrah and Kuldeep being rested, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Khaleel Ahmed will be expected to lead the attack.
The spin department may see the return of Yuzvendra Chahal in the absence of Kuldeep while Krunal Pandya will expect to build on an impressive start to his international career.
The visitors, on the other hand, have been in disarray in the T20s after posing an unexpected challenge to the Indians in the ODIs.
The absence of regular openers - Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis - and the decision to tinker with the combination at the top hasn't helped their cause either.
Captain Carlos Brathwaite admitted they had to make do with the resources available and the team will aim to end the series with a consolation win.
The likes of Kieron Pollard, Darren Bravo and Denesh Ramdin haven't fired and the impressive Shimron Hetmyer, pushed up the order, hasn't found the going easy to add to the Windies' woes.
Among the bowlers, Oshane Thomas has impressed the most with his pace and ability to take wickets but has lacked support from the others.
Brathwaite, who rose to fame after smashing Ben Stokes for four sixes in the final over of the 2016 ICC World T20 final in Kolkata, will be eager to showcase his abilities and thereby inspire his men to raise their game against a dominant Indian side in the concluding match of the tour to secure a consolation win.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Shahbaz Nadeem, Siddarth Kaul.
Windies: Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Obede McCoy, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran, Rovman Powell, Denesh Ramdin, Sherfane Rutherford, Oshane Thomas.
Match starts 7 pm IST.
(With PTI inputs)
India Cricket Team
West Indies Cricket Team
Rohit Sharma
Shikhar Dhawan
Kieron Pollard