India vs West Indies 2017: 5 ways Windies can draw level in the series

West Indies need to put in a perfect game to draw level in the series

What looked like yet another one-sided bilateral series took an interesting turn when a determined West Indian side led by a captain increasingly looking comfortable in a job he was handed over during times of turmoil, defended 190 on a slow and low Antigua wicket.

The love story between West Indies cricket and Antigua began from the times of Brian Lara but neither he nor the few followers of ODI cricket in the Caribbean would have expected this surprising turn of events against an Indian side affected by the sour exit of their coach following a captain-coach tussle.

With one game washed out and two in India's pocket, West Indies have no opportunity to build on their performance in Antigua and win the series. However, they can still draw level, an incentive that a side which missed the Champions Trophy would welcome with both hands.

But one good game does not hide the million flaws within and the fact remains that West Indies are still on the wall between minnows and the others. A slight push from either side will see them take a huge plunge but the question is if they can trigger that push in the right direction.

Here we analyse five ways the Windies can draw inspiration from their performance in the last game and draw level in the series.


#5 Building effective partnerships

If there is one real area of concern for a depleted West Indies outfit, it is their sorely inadequate batting. The inclusion of a steady head in Roston Chase was expected to lend the batting line-up some stability but the all-rounder who has turned heads with his Test performances hasn't quite been able to replicate his success in the shorter format.

A glance at the best partnerships built in the series is a good indicator of where West Indies stand in terms of their batting. While Shai Hope and Evin Lewis put on an 89 run stand for the third wicket in the second ODI, there have only been two other partnerships above 50.

India, on the other hand, managed as many as five fifty-plus stands and two century stands in the series. If the Windies can concentrate on batting in pairs, India will have their task cut out.

#4 An individual match-winning knock from someone

Roston Chase has been their saviour in Tests. Can he translate it to runs in ODIs?

When Fakhar Zaman propelled Pakistan to a winning total in the finals of the Champions Trophy one could not help but think of the West Indies, which needed at least one such batsman who can win games on their own with the bat.

Since the exit of the likes of Chris Gayle, Darren Bravo, Dwyane Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell, West Indies barely boast of any such player in ODIs.

The likes of Shai Hope and Evin Lewis have promised a lot but an actual innings of substance has been few and far between. The highest run scorer in the series for West Indies is Shai Hope with 130 runs thus far in 3 innings at an average of 43.33.

Forget that none of the other Windies batsmen have over 100 runs, none of them even come close with the next highest being 60. They are pleading for a match winning knock from one of their top order men and although the bowlers have been pretty good, another win sounds bleak without a big innings from the top 6.

#3 Tightening the noose

Holder has led admirably but needs to tighten the noose after they get to the middle-order

West Indies bowlers have done a commendable job right through the series but the fact is they have let India off the hook after having them down on the mat in two out of the four games. In the third ODI, they had Dhawan and Kohli back in the hut by the 10th over but let Rahane, Yuvraj, Dhoni and Jadhav to propel the team to 251.

In the final ODI which they won, they had India at 47/3 with their famed men back in the pavilion but West Indies let them come close after Rahane and Dhoni strung together a good stand. They might have won eventually but it is not always that Dhoni falters in such an easy chase.

As Pakistan showed in the Champions Trophy final, India's strength lies in the top order but once you break through that the intensity has to be maintained until they cave in. It is not always that you dismiss the likes of Dhawan and Kohli early in the innings but when you do, it has to count for something.

#2 Handling Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep has been sensational for India in his debut series

The chinaman spinner has revived India's spin bowling fortunes since making his debut in the West Indies. With 8 wickets in 3 innings at an average of 15.25 and economy of 4.20, it is safe to say that Kuldeep has been the X-factor for India with the ball.

He leads the wickets chart in his debut series and his wrong 'un has bamboozled the already vulnerable batting line-up of the West Indies.

If West Indies need to win at Kingston, they need to deny wickets to the chinaman spinner. Kuldeep has allowed Ashwin and Hardik Pandya to bowl without pressure but if Windies can play him out or milk him for ones and twos the pressure will be on the others to take wickets.

How they handle the wily Kolkata Knight Riders spinner will go a long way in determining the winners of the final ODI.

Also Read: Debunking Ajinkya Rahane's 'slow scorer' myth

#1 Shaking up India's top order

Ajinkya Rahane has found some much-needed form at the top

They have done it in the past two ODIs but it is of little importance if they cannot do it again in the final ODI that would decide the series. The Indian top order has been making runs at will in the past few years and unless the Windies stick to what they have been doing right and take out the trio of Rahane-Dhawan-Kohli early, the game would be out of their grasps before they know it.

The underrated Ajinkya Rahane is making full use of a second lease of life in the ODI format after Rohit Sharma was rested while Kohli has been rather edgy and fickle since the half-century at Port of Spain. Dhawan, meanwhile, seems at odds with the slowness of the wicket but he is known to explode in crunch games.

If West Indies can get these three back in the pavilion in quick time, India's soft belly will be tested.

Also Read: Chris Gayle returns as West Indies announce squad for one-off T20I against India

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Edited by Staff Editor