Windies visit offers Team India a chance to set the frequency right
Virat Kohli during a training session on Tuesday. (Photo: SUNOJ NINAN MATHEW)
Kochi: After the England tour that exposed more than a few chinks in the armour it is time for Team India to take a reality check against the West Indies before setting out in defence of the World Cup Down Under in February-March next year. In the Caribbeans, M.S. Dhoni & Co. face volatile opponents who had a miserable sojourn here last year and have not enhanced their reputations since. The visitors at best are capable of offering a selection dilemma to the home team that is yet to augment a dependable unit for the 2015 World Cup to be held in Australia and New Zealand.
As the five-match ODI series begins at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium here on Wednesday, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has evinced hope of setting right a previously infallible record in the shorter format that was questioned towards the close of the English odyssey.The visit of the Windies offers a chance to set the frequency right ahead of the twin series Down Under beginning November. “We want to do a few things here and not go to Australia thinking maybe we should have done that,” said Dhoni.
The onus clearly is on utilising the resources at disposal. The prime of which is reassigning Ajinkya Rahane to the opener role in the absence of Rohit Sharma who is out with multiple injuries. The team think-tank needs to muscle up an inconsistent bowling attackWith just a 14-member squad for the first three ODIs, the Indian line-up for the Kochi contest is predictable.
Shikhar Dhawan and Rahane look set to open the innings followed by usual suspects Virat Kohli, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja. Kuldeep Yadav — included in the squad replacing a rested Ravichandran Ashwin — could vie for a potential debut though chances are that Amit Mishra would get the nod. However, Dhoni did not rule out the prospect of including a third spinner given the dew factor.
On the other hand, like last year when the Windies lost the series opener by six wickets at the same venue the prospect of yet another difficult start to the tour is upon them as they appear even more fickle in the absence of star players Chris Gayle and Sunil Narine.The consecutive defeats in practice games could very well serve as a revelation for what is in store for the tourists over the next 40 days in India.
Skipper Darren Bravo, Dwayne Smith and Andre Russell need little time to get acclimatised having played until the Champions League T20 final last week.Meanwhile, the local meteorological department has forecast rains for Wednesday.
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