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

India won all of their home series

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.

#2 Mental rest for senior players post the Kohli-Kumble fallout

There seems to be no end to the Kohli-Kumble fallout

With the ruckus that has been created post-Anil Kumble’s unceremonious exit as Team India’s head coach, a break would have helped senior cricketers keep themselves away from the limelight.

Constant honking by the media can lead to mental unrest among players, and it is usually the senior players who are contacted for quotes and insights into anything leading to a controversy.

Playing a second string side, who haven’t witnessed much of the fallout behind locked doors, could have certainly saved some of the players constant pressure from the paparazzi.

#3 West Indies are not a major threat

Ranked 8th, West Indies do not pose a serious threat in international cricket

India are the clear cut favourites of the series against West Indies who are ranked ninth on the ICC ODI rankings (which is why they also failed to qualify for the Champions Trophy 2017). However, the downside to India’s campaign is that they are shrouded by a huge off-field imbroglio, and add to that, they are playing the series without a coach.

The hosts can capitalise on this and turn the tables around. But speaking of their cricketing talent alone, with all due respect, they are much inferior to the Men in Blue. The Windies last beat India in an ODI series in 2006, and that explains why this was a good opportunity for the team management to experiment with the squad.

#4 An opportunity to experiment

Rayudu has always performed well in Indian colours

Given that West Indies do not pose any major threat to the hosts, this was their best chance at experimenting with India’s bench strength, which is also the best in world cricket.

With talented players like Jayant Yadav, Ambati Rayudu, Robin Uthappa, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel and even Gautam Gambhir waiting to don the blue jersey, and also possessing talent to defeat an unpolished West Indies, the management could have definitely given a break to the senior players.

Besides, compared to other countries, Indian domestic cricket does not have competitive tournaments for the players to hone their skills round the year. It thus becomes the responsibility of the management to give these players a chance to perform on the international stage, which brings us to the next point.

#5 Opportunity for Suresh Raina to make his ODI comeback

Raina last played an international ODI in 2015

Suresh Raina last played an ODI in 2015, but there’s no doubting his potential. Since Raina was one of those on standby for the Champions Trophy, it was widely expected that he would find a place in the tour of West Indies.

Since the IPL 10, where he represented the Gujarat Lions, Raina hasn’t played any competitive cricket and perhaps one of the middle order batsmen could have been given a rest to give Raina a chance.

This tournament could have also been a great opportunity to implore more options for the World Cup 2019, and an experienced player like Raina deserves more international games to prove his mettle.

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Edited by Staff Editor