India start favourites

Port of Spain, June 22

Captain Virat Kohli will look to put to rest all speculations and controversies regarding Anil Kumble’s controversial exit as India gear up for the first ODI against a second-string West Indies here tomorrow. At a time when his rift with Kumble and the latter’s exit are grabbing headlines world over, Kohli couldn’t have asked for a more convenient opposition than West Indies, who struggled even against minnows Afghanistan recently. A big win in the five-match ODI series and single T20 will help divert the attention from the controversy. In this series, in the absence of the chief coach, Kohli will have full freedom in team selection and other areas where he might have felt constrained earlier.

West Indies sitting duck

With Jason Holder’s men just about managing to draw the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan 1-1, the Indian team is unlikely to be challenged at al. A 5-0 whitewash is expected against a side that has a cumulative ODI experience of 213 matches between 13 players with skipper Holder as the most-capped player with 58 matches. In comparison, Yuvraj Singh (301), MS Dhoni (291) and Virat Kohli (184) have played a whopping 776 matches between themselves.

For India, the series is also an ideal platform to test the team’s bench strength. With Jasprit Bumrah rested for the series, it will be a good opportunity to check out Mohammed Shami, who did not get a game during the Champions Trophy. The pacer has not played any official ODI since the 2015 World Cup semifinal — he had multiple surgeries thereafter and played only a few Test matches. The skipper may also be tempted to bring back Ajinkya Rahane at the top with Rohit Sharma also skipping the series. The other option is to try out young Rishabh Pant, who has the experience of opening for Delhi in domestic cricket. Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav may also get a chance. — Agencies