5 reasons why India should have sent a second string side to the Windies

In less than a week after the Champions Trophy 2017 concluded, India flew to West Indies from England to play five ODIs and a solitary T20. While persistent rains abandoned the opening game of the series, and the second game was delayed for the same reason, fans can hope that the remainder of the series is played under blue skies.

For the visitors, who were the runners-up of Champions Trophy 2017, an eighth-ranked West Indies is a weak opposition. However, on their day, the Windies can spring up a beautiful surprise and cause an upset, which is why they cannot be ruled out.

But one can still argue that India could have sent a second string side to the Caribbean due to several reasons. Here are five of those.

#1 Excessive workload

India have been playing non-stop cricket since their long home season, when they played host to New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia respectively. And soon after that began the tenth edition of the Indian Premier League; another two months of intensive cricket.

Soon followed the Champions Trophy, where none of the senior players could have been rested. Since October 2016 to June 2017, the players who played in all three formats have toiled hard and need some time to rejuvenate themselves.

Also, after the Caribbean tour, India will travel to Sri Lanka for three Tests, five ODIs and a one-off T20I. A break for the senior players for the tour of West Indies could have allowed things to calm down and helped the team better when they face a challenging Sri Lankan side.