India stand in front of yet another series victory, while the West Indies will be eager to prove that at least in the limited-overs format, they are no pushovers. That’s how the things stand ahead of the fifth and final match of the ODI series, to be played in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
India are leading 2-1 in the series with a dominating victory in the last match, in Mumbai. The West Indies, who had given a good account of themselves in the first three matches of the series, were thoroughly outplayed at the Brabourne Stadium.
Obviously, the Caribbean team will have to improve by quite a few notches if they are to deny Virat Kohli’s India a victory, in the match and the series as well.
The weather, however, is expected to play a part on Thursday with showers being predicted.
Kohli’s men bounced back from the loss in the third match in Pune to record a massive 224-run win in Mumbai. The momentum will therefore be with the Indians.
With the Indian batsmen being in top form, especially Kohli and Rohit Sharma, another run fest could be expected on Thursday.
Kohli and Rohit have been in superlative form, scoring three and two centuries, respectively. Ambati Rayudu has also been among runs in the middle order.
The flamboyant Shikhar Dhawan, however, has not capitalised on the starts and so will be hoping to get some runs. So will Mahendra Singh Dhoni, his place once again in the spotlight after being kept out of the squad for the upcoming T20I series.
On the bowling front, the return of Jasprit Bumrah has added value to the Indian attack and he proved his worth in the two games he has played so far. Young Khaleel Ahmed showed he’s learning quickly with an impressive spell at the Brabourne Stadium.
The Greenfield Stadium, where Thursday’s match will be played, will thus be hosting its first ODI. Last year this venue had hosted a T20 International against New Zealand. With the conditions being humid and the pitch likely to be flat and dry, it will be probably be a lot of hard work for the bowlers.
West Indies fielding coach Nic Pothas said on Wednesday that they are in India not just to compete, but also to learn from their fancied opponents. “India are a great team to learn from. We don’t just play against India, we learn from them too. These are great opportunities when you come and play against teams of this quality,” Pothas at a media conference.
“We have a very young team. I think like anything, when you play at this level, whatever sport it might be, it’s always going to come down to execution over a long period of time.
“Our guys are learning all the time and they’re having to learn at the international level, which is never easy. But they’re getting better all the time and importantly they’re open to that learning. We’re very positive,” he added.
Match starts: 1.30pm
