India Vs West Indies: 3rd T20I - Momentum With West Indies As India Look To Bounce Back

The series finale takes centre stage at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai with the encounter locked at 1-1. After a commanding batting performance from India in the first game to seal it, West Indies backed up their own from the opening match to produce another explosive display to claim the second affair. Virat Kohli’s men had very little going their way in Thiruvananthapuram.

Also Read: India vs West Indies 2019: 3rd T20I, Mumbai – West Indies’ Predicted Playing XI

They lost the toss, their openers fell cheaply, and the finishers couldn’t finish strongly enough, managing only 30 from the last four overs. Their show in the field went from bad to worse, dropping sitters, conceding boundaries, and not able to maintain the level of energy required in a T20 game. The only silver lining that the men in blue could take from their first game is the blistering knock of Shivam Dube, who could be a big part of their plans ahead of the World T20 next year.

The Windies, on the other hand, have the momentum on their side for now. On a relatively slow deck, their bowlers bar against Shivam Dube executed their plans exceptionally well. Kesrick Williams roared back with two wickets from four overs after getting belted in Hyderabad. After restricting India to 170, their openers went after the Indian bowling attack straight away. Lendl Simmons continued his love affair with India, punishing them for giving him reprieves as they did in the semi-final of the 2016 ICC World T20. All in all, they learnt quickly from their mistakes, regrouped, scored their first win in seven T20 games against India, and without doubt, are on a course to beating them in Mumbai.

Changes expected in the playing eleven:

India:

Washington Sundar’s spot is under intense scrutiny, having been a liability in the field and not able to produce wickets as regularly as India would’ve liked. The hosts, drafting in Kuldeep Yadav, could prove instrumental since he bowls well even with the dew factor. And the dew is likely to play a significant role at the Wankhede Stadium. A big score off Rohit Sharma’s bat is due, and the conditions in his home ground in the series decider is the greatest stage to breathe fire.

West Indies:

It wouldn’t be surprising to see the visitors stick with the same playing eleven, having fared well in all the departments of the game. Skipper Kieron Pollard still stressed on cutting out on extras with the ball.

Date and venue: December 11th 2019, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Time: 7:00 pm IST

Pitch report:

Traditionally, dew has been a significant factor on this deck. Toss would again be very crucial since, in retrospect, the track has favoured the chasing side; hence, the team winning the toss would prefer to bowl first. There is marginal assistance for the spinners; however, it’s a batsman’s paradise.

Weather report:

The weather is clear for Wednesday and rains aren’t expected to play spoilsport. At the day, bright sunshine is likely to pour itself in Mumbai.

India: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (c), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar

West Indies: Lendl Simmons, Evin Lewis, Brandon King, Shimron Hetmyer, Kieron Pollard (c), Nicholas Pooran (wk), Jason Holder Hayden Walsh, Khary Pierre, Sheldon Cottrell, Kesrick Williams

Match prediction:

The match should be a closely-fought contest as with either win for each side; the scales are equally titled to both the side’s favour. As also mentioned earlier, the toss will play a crucial factor in the game and can be a high-scoring thriller.

Head to head:

Matches: 16

India won: 9

West Indies won: 6

No Result: 1

Stats that matter:

India have won only one T20 game out of the three they have played in the Wankhede Stadium. They lost to England by six wickets in 2012 and to the Windies by seven wickets in 2016. Their only win came against Sri Lanka in 2017 by five wickets.

Virat Kohli has overtaken Rohit Sharma as the highest run-getter in T20 internationals with 2563 runs. The Indian limited-overs vice-captain with 2652 runs needs only one run to reclaim the top spot.

Since the start of 2018 till date, the men in blue have won only two games out of 16 games while batting first.

Also Read: India vs West Indies 2019: 3rd T20I, Mumbai – Match Prediction