India vs West Indies: 3 West Indies to watch out for in T20I series
India blanked West Indies in the 3-match ODI series. The focus now shifts to the T20I series, and this is where West Indies will be far more competitive since this is the format they are the strongest in.
Kieron Pollard and team come into this series after a superb 3-2 win against England in their most recent T20I series. India, on the other hand, come into this series on a six-match winning streak in the format. They beat Afghanistan, Scotland and Namibia in the T20 World Cup and then blanked New Zealand 3-0.
Kieron Pollard is back and he will lead the side and the West Indies-six hitting machine could pose a real threat to the Indian attack. There are enough power-hitters that will make this series an interesting affair.
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Here we take a look at 3 West Indies players to watch for in the T20I series:
1.) Nicholas Pooran
It has been a great few days for Nicholas Pooran. He was snapped up by Sunrisers Hyderabad and became the third player in the IPL this year to bag a ₹10.75 crore contract. He now has to shut out all the noise and get the job done for the West Indies.
The wicket-keeper batter has not been in the best of forms recently. He had a mediocre ODI series and did not have an entirely memorable IPL season with Punjab Kings last year. After bagging the SRH contract, he would want to make a statement and could be the man to watch out for.
As far as his numbers are concerned, he has scored 606 runs in 31 T20I innings at an average of 22.44 and with a strike rate of 154.99.
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2.) Rovman Powell
Power-hitter Rovman Powell was snapped up by Delhi Capitals for Rs. 2.8 crore. He made a solid statement ahead of this IPL mega auctions with a sensational innings against England. In the 3rd T20I against England, he smashed his maiden T20 international century off only 51 balls. He smacked nine sixes and four fours and was absolutely unstoppable.
Such was his brute hitting that he could be a real threat to the Indian bowlers. The Eden Gardens surface should assist stroke-makers and if Powell gets going, he can seal the deal on his own.
Apart from his big-hitting prowess, he is also handy with the ball and in the middle overs, he could pose questions to the Indian batters.
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3.) Jason Holder
Jason Holder's stocks have been on the rise in T20s. He was snapped up by Lucknow Super Giants in the mega auction for a whopping Rs 8.75 crore. However, he would want to keep his price tag aside and focus on getting the job done for West Indies.
“Outside noise is part of the sport. For me, I stay aligned to the teams’ goals and processes and that’s what keeps me grounded,” Holder said in a recent interview with a news agency.
He has the ability to bowl across different phases in T20, and can walk out to bat whenever the team needs. As he showed in the England series, he can extract good bounce and movement from the pitch and uses his height perfectly.