Winner takes all

Mumbai, December 10

India will have to address their inadequacies that were laid bare by West Indies in the previous match when the two teams clash in the series-deciding third T20 International here tomorrow.

The series is locked 1-1 after reigning T20 world champions West Indies turned on the heat in the second T20I in Thiruvananthapuram following a Virat Kohli special in the first match in Hyderabad.

For India, the focus will once again be on young guns like off-spinner Washington Sundar and under-fire wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant. The spotlight on Pant, especially, has been obsessive and it is expected to be no different when the team takes the field at the Wankhede Stadium. As for Sundar, it would be interesting to see whether the team management persists with him or gives chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav a game.

Sundar has taken only three wickets in the last five T20Is that he has played (two against West Indies and three against Bangladesh) and leaked 144 runs in 23 overs. He has ended up wicketless in the two T20Is against South Africa. Kuldeep, who last played a T20I against New Zealand in Hamilton back in February, was on the bench in the first two games.

Pant focus

The focus on Pant has been unrelenting and it won’t be easy for him to regain the early form that made him MS Dhoni’s heir apparent. Coming in at No. 4, Pant made 33 not out, 18, 6, 27, 19, and 4 in the last seven T20s he has featured in. His last T20I fifty came against West Indies in August, in Providence. With the likes of Sanju Samson waiting in the wings, Pant will have to come good sooner than later.

But in the overall analysis, India’s batting has never been a problem. Opener Rohit Sharma, who has had a rare twin failure, would be raring to go at his home ground. KL Rahul and skipper Kohli have been among the runs. Shivam Dube slammed his maiden T20I 50 in Thiruvananthapuram, hitting towering sixes, and he would want to come good in front of his home crowd, as would Shreyas Iyer.

Bowling issues

However, the bowling is a slight concern. The profligate pace duo of Deepak Chahar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar leaked runs in the first two matches. Chahar had a memorable series against Bangladesh but has not been able to repeat the show this time around.

Also, India’s fielding has been way below par. The dropped catches and several mis-fields prompted Kohli to say that if the fielding does not improve, no score would be enough. Also, the hosts are good chase-masters but will need to learn how to defend targets. — PTI