130 and 150 all out, and defeated by an innings and 141 runs. That is how the West Indies’ sorry report card read in the opening Test in Dominica. Other than winning the toss, at no time in the match did it seem as if the Caribbean side were in the game. On a spin-friendly surface, Ravi Ashwin bagged 12 wickets, and combined with his spin twin Ravindra Jadeja to run through the opponent.
So what can the home side do to resurrect their fortunes? Perhaps leave a bit of grass on the surface for the second Test at Port of Spain, Trinidad. By some distance, their best bowler at home is Kemar Roach. Although the experienced pacer has struggled to make his presence felt abroad, the seamer has 181 Test wickets at just over 22 in home conditions. But most of that success have come on tracks with some grass or decks with variable bounce, like St Lucia, Grenada, Jamaica and Barbados. Grass will also bring other pace bowlers: Alzarri Joseph and Jason Holder into the equation.
It is true that the West Indies batters still have to put their hands up and get some runs on the board. But it is fair to say that on a spin-friendly deck, the hosts have little chance of putting up a good show against a world-class spin attack. In the batting department, with Raymon Reifer left out, Kirk McKenzie could make his Test debut. Like Alick Athanaze, who made his debut in the previous game, McKenzie plays with freedom.
What about India? As Rohit Sharma said, the think-tank wouldn’t make drastic changes to the XI. But the visitors would expect Shubman Gill to make an impact in his new position at No. 3. Gill has a mere 94 runs in his last seven Test innings away from Asia. Other than that, in Dominica, India had most of the boxes ticked in batting. Yashasvi Jaiswal cracked a ton on debut, while Rohit composed a hundred. Virat Kohli had to work hard but ended with a gutsy 76. India, who haven’t lost a Test to the Caribbean side since 2002, would fancy their chances of winning the 100th Test between the teams and clinch the series 2-0.
Venue Details and Time: Port of Spain, Trinidad. 20 July. From 19:30 IST
Expected conditions: Rain may play spoilsport right through the Test. That could also mean a little bit of moisture and help for the bowlers.
Teams: India might end up playing the same XI that dominated the opening Test. There could be a slim chance of Navdeep Saini or Mukesh Kumar replacing one of the seamers.
Yashaswi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishan Kishan, R Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat/Navdeep Saini/Mukesh Kumar, Mohammad Siraj.
The West Indies might opt for Kirk McKenzie as one of the middle-order batters. They have picked spinner Kevin Sinclair. His selection in the XI would depend on the health of Rahkeem Cornwall, who was laid low by a chest infection in the last game.
Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Kraigg Brathwaite, Kirk McKenzie, Alick Athanaze, Jermaine Blackwood, Joshua Da Silva, Jason Holder, Kevin Sinclair/Rahkeem Cornwall, Alzarri Joseph, Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel.