🏏India vs West Indies: 2nd ODI at Kensington Oval - 29/07/2023🏏

🏏India vs West Indies: 2nd ODI at Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados on 29/07/2023 at 7PM IST🏏

"We wanted to give game time to the ODI guys who have come in, we will keep trying those things whenever possible," said Rohit Sharma after India's win in the first ODI, justifying the batting order which saw the skipper himself batting outside the top-six for only the second time since 2013 while Virat Kohli didn't get to bat at all. In the lead up to the World Cup later this year, India made plenty of experiments with their batting order in a modest chase of 115. On a Kensington Oval pitch which had plenty of help for the bowlers, as many as 15 wickets went down against spin. India eventually got over the line despite losing five wickets, and Ishan Kishan's half-century would have given the team management some confidence as they look to finalise the World Cup spots.

Kuldeep Yadav, preferred over Yuzvendra Chahal for the first match, made the most of the opportunity despite bowling only three overs, as he combined with Ravindra Jadeja to skittle the West Indies out cheaply. Mukesh Kumar was decent in his debut game while India also tried Hardik Pandya as their opening bowler, with some success. They are likely to continue with such experiments, both with their batting and bowling, in the second ODI as they look to seal the series and extend their winning streak against the West Indies in ODIs to 10 games.

The hosts, on the other hand, will have a lot of work to do in order to challenge India. Their batting has especially been a let-down with four among the top five getting into double digits but none putting up a big score. The bowling, on the other hand, was quite impressive, with the way they didn't let India off the hook despite posting a low total. Shai Hope, who top-scored with 43, will be hoping for some kind of support at the other end and will expect the batters to show better application with their shot-making going forward.

Kensington Oval Pitch Report IND vs WI 2nd ODI 2023: Kensington Oval Pitch Report:

The average score at the Kensington Oval in ODIs is 230, and the highest score is 364/4 by England. The lowest score is 91 by Ireland. The surface is quite dry, which means that the ball will tend to come onto the bat nicely. The spinners will get some turn for the pitch, but it is not as much as some other pitches in the Caribbean.

The Kensington Oval is a good batting wicket with good bounce and pace. Fast Bowlers could get a couple of wickets, but Spinners also have a very important role in this match.

The pitch is expected to be similar for the 2nd ODI, so both teams will be looking to bat first and post a big score. The bowlers will need to be patient and have to play with good technique and intent.

IND vs WI 2nd ODI 2023 Weather Forecast:

The weather is expected to be sunny and clear for the match, with no rain forecast. This should be ideal batting conditions, whereas Wind speed is expected to be around 26 km/h. The Humidity will be about 80%, and the temperature will be around 28 degrees Celsius.

What to expect: There was enough bounce and spin on offer during the first ODI, helping the pacers and spinners alike. India might look to bat first should they win the toss in the second game, to give their batters some challenge should the pitch turn out anything similar for the second game. Showers are forecast in the first half of the day, and might lead to some interruptions.

Team news

West Indies

Keacy Carty, Alzarri Joseph, Oshane Thomas and Kevin Sinclair were the ones to sit out for the first game. Among them, Carty is an option in the batting order, with Mayers not having had a good run in ODIs of late. Carty, meanwhile, had scored 87 in his previous outing against Sri Lanka.

Probable XI: Brandon King, Alick Athanaze, Shai Hope (C & wk), Keacy Carty, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Romario Shepherd, Dominic Drakes, Yannic Cariah, Gudakesh Motie, Jayden Seales.

India

The visitors may not make too many changes as they look to give the current lot another go to audition for the World Cup. They are likely to remain unchanged.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Umran Malik, Mukesh Kumar.

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What they said:

"Since my return from injury last year, I've been trying to consistently bowl the right lengths. Sometimes you get wickets, sometimes you don't even when you bowl well, but length is very crucial especially for the spinners. When the opposition loses a few wickets, then I try my variations for wickets. Happy with the way I started in the first ODI" - Kuldeep Yadav, after his four-wicket haul in the first ODI

In the spotlight

There's a lot to like about Alick Athanaze. He has a solid technique, can play some fluid drives, and is also sharp in the slip cordon. More runs against India, this time in ODIs, and in the following CPL, where he is set to make his debut for Barbados Royals, could potentially make him the new face of a West Indies side that is in transition.

India are also in transition and in the absence of Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar made his ODI debut and came away with the wicket of Athanaze. In the longest format, Mukesh can relentlessly probe away outside off, and can similarly test batters outside off in white-ball cricket. But that doesn't mean he's a one trick pony. He can nail yorkers with the old ball, something that was on display during his first IPL stint with Delhi Capitals earlier this year.

Stats and trivia

• West Indies have lost their last five bilateral ODI series at home and are now on the verge of losing their sixth.
• Since his return to ODIs in January earlier this year, Kuldeep Yadav has picked up 19 wickets in nine games at an average of 17 and economy rate of 5.25. Among spinners from Full-Member nations, only Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana have more wickets than Kuldeep during this period in ODI cricket.
• Ravindra Jadeja is six wickets away from 200 strikes in ODI cricket. He will become the third Indian spinner to the landmark after Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. He is also three wickets away from surpassing Venkatesh Prasad's tally of 196 wickets.

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Won’t be able to watch it live!