5 reasons why India might send a second string squad for West Indies tour

There is plenty of action on the horizon for the Indian team in the 2017/18 season. Almost immediately after the Champions Trophy comes to a conclusion, they are scheduled to play five ODIs and a solitary T20I against West Indies in the Caribbean.

The tour is set to begin on June 23^rd and will run until July 9^th. The first two ODIs will be played at Queen's Park Oval in Trinidad before the caravan moves to Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua for the third and fourth matches. The final ODI, as well as the one-off T20I, are slated to take place at Sabina Park in Jamaica.

Here are five reasons why India might send a second string squad for the West Indies tour.

#5 Regulars need a break

The regulars in the team have been playing non-stop for quite some time. Following a long home season in 2016/17 which saw as many as 13 Tests and 11 white ball games, the established players went on to participate in the Indian Premier League for the better part of April and May. For those who play all three formats, the calendar has been a particularly demanding one.

The frontline batsmen and first-choice bowlers need some time to rejuvenate themselves before the grind begins again. According to the Future Tours Program (FTP), India embark on a full tour to Sri Lanka for three Tests, five ODIs and a one-off T20I after the West Indies trip. A brief break could go a long way in maintaining the intensity for the challenges ahead.

#4 Time to test bench strength

The likes of Axar Patel, Amit Mishra and Ambati Rayudu should step up to the task

As per the ICC ODI rankings, India’s top two bowlers are Axar Patel (at 11^th) and Amit Mishra (at 13^th). However, neither of them are playing in the Champions Trophy. Rightly so, the selectors opted for the experienced duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. Factoring in the stiff competition for places in the team, the West Indies tour provides a platform to test the bench strength.

Extra Cover: Why Axar Patel should be groomed like Ravindra Jadeja

Batsmen such as Dinesh Karthik, Manish Pandey and Ambati Rayudu are seeking chances to showcase their skills. Considering the amount of cricket that India usually plays in every season, it becomes imperative for the team management to hone in on adequate back-ups in every department of the game.

#3 West Indies not a major threat anymore

West Indies are currently languishing at ninth in the ODI rankings

In the olden days, the primary thought of touring the Caribbean was accompanied by the inevitable prospect of having to face a menacing battery of fast bowlers. However, since the turn of the millennium, West Indies have continued to plummet deeply into a seemingly endless abyss. Their woes have aggravated to such an extent that they failed to qualify for the Champions Trophy for the first time in history.

No longer the force they used to be, their previous ODI series victory against a traditional powerhouse (excluding Bangladesh and Zimbabwe) came in 2012 when New Zealand were ambushed by a 4-1 margin. More pertinently, the last time they defeated India in an ODI series (including both home and away matches) was way back in 2006. With West Indies languishing amongst the bottom ranked teams, India can certainly utilise the tour to experiment.

#2 Opportunity to groom youngsters

Promising talents such as Rishabh Pant need to be given chances

Sandwiched between the Champions Trophy and the all-formats trip to Sri Lanka, the limited-overs tour to West Indies is one of those assignments which could struggle for a context in the greater sense of the word. For Jason Holder’s men, the ODIs stand as a beacon of hope to secure vital ranking points and get back on track in the race for automatic qualification to the 2019 World Cup. Meanwhile, for the visitors, there is no such standout objective apart from winning the series.

In such regard, the tour offers an opportunity for India to groom young blood and bolster their depth in the system. Potential recruits such as Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer need to be given exposure to international cricket during the early stages of their respective careers in order for them to develop into world-class players.

#1 Monitoring the workloads of senior stars

The workloads of veterans MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh have to be monitored accordingly

At 35 and counting, MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh are approaching the final phase of their stellar careers. Assuming both veterans have set their sights on the 2019 World Cup as the culmination, the selectors and coaching staff need to start monitoring their workloads in a pro-active manner so as to prevent premature burnout.

While Yuvraj has been stifled by injuries and illness in the recent past, Dhoni has had a packed schedule for the last few months despite playing only white-ball cricket. At an age when a sense of drudgery begins to set in, it is paramount to retain the hunger within both seasoned campaigners. A timely breather should keep them physically reinvigorated and mentally fresh for future assignments.