After a dominant win in the first match, the Indian Cricket team will lock horns against the West Indies at Queen’s Park Oval. The Windies will be anticipating a victory over the visitors while the Men in Blue will look forward to ace the second match and complete the test clean sweep.
A win for the Caribbean representatives will shift the momentum in their favor ahead of the limited-overs series. In addition to that, it can also help the Windies find an opening and get back on the winning track. On the other hand, India will be looking forward to a prepotent triumph as they’ll be playing major tournaments such as the Asia Cup and ICC ODI World Cup, later in the year.
What have they done so far?
India ambushed Kraigg Brathwaite’s West Indies in a one-sided contest in the 1st test of the series. The match took place at Windsor Park Dominica, where the Windies won the toss and they decided to bat first, however, the match didn’t go in their favor as they fell on the ground with their face first. Brathwaite and Chanderpaul were expected to play a crucial role in the Caribbean batting line-up but all they displayed was disappointment.
The West Indies was suffering menacingly against Indian spinners as Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin settled their feet on away soil with an aggregate of eight wickets in the first inning. Alick Athanaza was the top scorer for the West Indies as he scored 47 off 99 deliveries. For India, debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal alongside skipper Rohit Sharma came to open the innings. Consequently, the Men in Blue lost their inaugural wicket at the score of 229, after both the opening batters were par in their centuries.
Kraigg Brathwaite was trying all the possible permutations and combinations in order to get a breakthrough, the Caribbean representatives even used nine different bowlers in the desperate requirement of a wicket. The gamble partially turned out to be successful as Shubman Gill and Ajinkya Rahane lost their wickets early in the match. However, Jaiswal and Virat Kohli’s also made a crucial partnership and the team eventually decided to declare the first inning at 421 runs with the loss of five.
Nevertheless, the West Indies provided a much inferior display in the second inning too. After picking up five wickets in the first inning, Ashwin grasped seven more dismissals in order to break the back of the Caribbean batting line-up and also crushed their hopes of a possible win or draw. Thus, the West Indies’ Innings of 150 and 130 runs respectively failed to give India even a slight sign of concern.
Before heading into the two-match series, India as well as the West Indies, both sides were having a hard time in the longest format of cricket. The Men in Blue recently suffered a heartwrenching loss against Australia at the World Test Championship Final, losing the second consecutive final of the competition. On the other hand, Kraigg Brathwaite’s side played their last test series against Temba Bavuma’s South Africa, where they suffered a 2-0 loss with a majestic margin.
Head to Head Record
The 20th century witnessed the rise of Caribbean cricket as it acquired one of the most fearsome squads in all the formats of cricket. However, after the icons started departing from the team, the vacant spots in the team begin haunting the young prospects. Consequently, the West Indies have defeated India in the longest format of cricket only twice since the commencement of the 21st century.
The last test series that the Windies won against India was in 2002, where they grasped the series 2-1. However, since 2002, the Caribbean representatives have lost fourteen matches against the Men in Blue on away or home soil. Moreover, they’re yet to record a win over India in test cricket over the last two decades.
Talking a look at the overall statistics of the two sides colliding in test cricket, the West Indies have an upper hand there. In a total of 99 matches, India has won 23 games whereas West Indies have come out victorious on 30 occasions, including the recent match they played in the ongoing test series.
Key Players
Alick Athanaza (West Indies): After the first match, the stocks are high on the name of Dominican all-rounder, Alick Athanaza. He was the only player in the whole squad who had a positive intent throughout the match. Athanaza managed to stay compact and scored 47 runs despite all the factors going against him in the first inning of the match. He also scored six fours and the only six of the inning, however, he ended up losing his wicket against the star of the game, Ravichandran Ashwin.
In addition to the 47-run innings, Alick Athanaza drew first blood as he took the wicket of the Indian skipper when all the frontline bowlers failed to break the opening partnership. Interestingly, he was also the top scorer of the second innings of the Windies too, where he scored 28 off 44 deliveries. Thus, Kraigg Brathwaite will look forward to putting him into a greater role and providing him with more significance in the second test against India.
Ashwin will look forward to picking a handful of wickets against the hosts in the second test
Ravichandran Ashwin (India): After Yashasvi Jaiswal made a blistering international debut against the West Indies in the first test, he has managed to become one of the favorites to lead the team in the second test too. However, Ravichandran Ashwin’s bowling figures were also equally important behind the triumph. The experienced spinner dismantled the Windies’ batting line-up in both innings with his vicious skill set.
Thus, after the match, Rohit Sharma might have regretted not playing Ashwin in the final of the WTC against Australia one more time. Therefore, taking five wickets in the first and then, seven in the second inning, added him to the elite list of bowlers with the most wickets in the oldest format of the game. Following his valiant performances, Ashwin can also play a major role in India’s campaign at the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup.
Predicted XIs
West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite ©, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Jermaine Blackwood, Kirk Mckenzie, Alick Athanaze, Joshua Da Silva (wk), Jason Holder, Kevin Sinclair, Alzarri Joseph, Kemar Roach, Jomel Warrican
India: Rohit Sharma ©, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Navdeep Saini, Mohammed Siraj
Prediction
The West Indies cricket team has been suffering majorly in recent times. They lost a spot in the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup and they are also on the verge of adding another infamous series record to their all-time tally. From batting to bowling, the Windies lack execution as well as vision, thus, India can get through with one or two days remaining in the fixture again, in the second test, sweeping the hosts completely.