Five players to watch out for when India face West Indies

West Indies put up a comprehensive performance against Sri Lanka in the opening match of the tri-series as they took a much-needed head start in the tournament. They needed that victory to sweep out the bitter memories of the Champions Trophy campaign. Their next challenge will be even bigger as they face India on Sunday. They will back themselves as their key players put up a great show against the Lankan lions. Sunil Narine bowled a match-winning spell ending with superb figures of 4/40 in his 10 overs, whereas Chris Gayle corrected the mistakes he made in England to smash the West Indies home with a stunning knock 109 runs of 100 balls.

India, on the other hand, could not have been in a better state of mind coming into this tournament. It’s scarcely been a week since they were crowned winners of the Champions Trophy, and they come to the Caribbean with an almost unchanged side. The West Indian conditions will not be entirely hostile to them with spin on offer for the likes of R. Jadeja, R. Ashwin and Amit Mishra. The batsmen will have to make a slight adjustment from the pace of the English wickets to the dry, slow surfaces. MS Dhoni might tinker with his team a little in the first match so as to give an opportunity to those players who did not get an opportunity at the Champions Trophy.

Here is a list of five players who will make a difference to the eventual result of the match:

5. Kieron Pollard

The big all-rounder was dismissed before he could add to the scorecard against Sri Lanka, but that was affordable in the position West Indies were in. He will have a greater role to play against India. His explosive ability down the order will be called upon, and it is long due now. He must be eager to erase the harsh memories of that dismissal that affected the eviction from the Champions Trophy. He has played against all of the Indian bowlers in the Indian Premier League with success, and now it’s time he replicates that with the national side.