India vs West Indies 3rd T20I: Preview and Predicted Playing XI
The Men in Blue won the second T20I by 71 runs at Lucknow to seal the series, and Rohit Sharma's men will look to add another series sweep to their name. The Carribean side will desperately want to escape some embarrassment by finishing the final fixture of India's tour on a positive note, when both these sides clash in the third T20I on Sunday, November 11 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
In the shortest format, both teams have faced each other in nine completed fixtures with the visitors leading the scoreline 5-4. In their most recent clash on November 6, when asked to bat, India posted a huge total of 195/2, and then limited the tourists to 124/9 to secure the match by 71 runs.
India
The hosts are on a roll at the moment and they seem to be enjoying their time against a hapless West Indian side. They won the first game by five wickets, then secured a comfortable 71 run win in next game and will now eye a series whitewash in the last fixture.
Batting
Skipper Rohit Sharma climbed the ton table to become the first batsman to hit four centuries in the T20I format. He cracked a whirlwind (111 runs off 61 balls) ton in the last game. The skipper is in sublime form at the moment and he is undoubtedly going to be the danger man in the final game as well.
Meanwhile, the team will also need KL Rahul to polish off his edges in final T20I, before moving on to the Aussie assignment. The batsman managed to get starts in both games but failed to convert them into big ones, which he will be eager to rectify in final outing against Windies.
Dinesh Karthik has been dependable in the middle, Rishabh Pant is expected to get few more chances to justify his space and both these batsmen have a major roll to play in case of unexpected top order collapse.
Bowling
India's bowling unit looks settled with the likes of Khaleel Ahmed, Yuzvendra Chahal and Krunal Pandya performing well. Pandya conceded just 15 runs off his four overs in the opening fixture, while Ahmed has been the surprise package for everyone, and these two, along with Chahal are expected to be a major threat for the visitors. With the series secured, management may decide to give Siddarth Kaul a go in the final outing.
Expected Playing XI
Rohit Sharma (C), Lokesh Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, Krunal Pandya, Siddarth Kaul, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal and Khaleel Ahmed.
West Indies
After losing the ODI series, the visitors were expected to give India a stiff competition in their preferred T20I format. But they have looked absolutely out of sorts against India's formidable lineup and are going into the final game of their tour all battered.
The Carribean side will hope for a dramatic turnaround in final tour game to get some confidence ahead of their next assignment against Bangladesh.
Batting
West Indies batting seems over-dependent on their opening pair of Shimron Hetmyer and Shai Hope and the team will need these two to set the tone with a crucial partnership at the top. While their middle has been ineffective throughout the series as none of them was able to show any resistance against daunting Indian attack.
In middle order, they will have a lot of hopes on Darren Bravo and Kieron Pollard, both have not been able to perform at their best and the team will need them to show some temperament on Sunday.
Bowling
Oshane Thomas has been their only bowler to show some resistance in the series. The pacer had struck twice in quick successions at Kolkata and was most economical in previous one. The team will expect him to chip in few early breakthroughs set the tone for others to follow.
Carlos Brathwaite and Khary Pierre both went for plenty last time out, giving away 101 runs in their eight overs and the visitors will need them to bowl well if they are to apply any sort of pressure on the Indian batsmen.
Expected Playing XI
Carlos Brathwaite (C), Fabian Allen, Keemo Paul, Khary Pierre, Oshane Thomas, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, Darren Bravo, Denesh Ramdin, Nicholas Pooran and Kieron Pollard.