India vs West Indies: 3 changes that India could make for the second T20
The 1st T20 match between India and West Indies at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata was quite competitive and fiercely fought by the two respective sides. It was too close to call as the West Indies bowlers gave a tough fight and made it difficult for the Indian batsmen to chase down even a low total of 110 runs. The temperament of Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, and Krunal Pandya enabled India to complete the run chase in the end.
The Indian bowlers especially the spinners did a wonderful job of restricting the West Indies to a total of 109 in 20 overs. The Indian batsmen, on the other hand, made a mountain out of a molehill to chase the total. Some batsmen played reckless shots and hence put pressure on others.
For the next match of the series, the Indian team management should take some tough calls and rectify the errors made by the team in this match. Let us have a look at the 3 changes India should make in the 2nd T20 against the West Indies:
#3 Bhuvneshwar Kumar for Umesh Yadav
Bhuvneshwar Kumar missed the first T20 against the West Indies due to a gastric complaint and did not accompany the team inside the stadium. Rather, he opted to rest and recuperate and be fit for the second T20 which is to be played at Lucknow. Because of this, India went into the 1st T20 with the pace attack consisting of Umesh Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, and Jasprit Bumrah.
Despite restricting the West Indies to a total of just 109 in twenty overs, Umesh Yadav was quite expensive in the 19th over when he gave away 16 runs due to missing the yorker length repeatedly and didn't change his pace to make it difficult for the batsmen to time the ball. On the other hand, Bumrah and Khaleel were quite economical, varied their pace and were quite successful in restricting the batsmen in the death overs.
Hence, Bhuvneshwar Kumar who is a well-experienced campaigner for India should replace Umesh Yadav in the next T20.