Windies v India, 4th ODI: India Predicted XI

The Indians weren’t their swashbuckling selves at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua but weren’t faced with a challenging opposition in the Windies either. What finished as a cakewalk for the visitors, in fact, began with the openers going through the grind to score runs.

Ajinkya Rahane’s 72 came at a sub-65 strike rate, which goes on to show the struggle India had to endure through the first 35 overs. Had it not been for the sense of urgency shown by MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav, India might have probably finished with just over 200 runs.

The bowlers, however, did a fine job given that they were defending just 251. The spinners took responsibility and Ravichandran Ashwin finally showed glimpses of his old wicket-hungry self. Kuldeep Yadav was perhaps the better bowler on the day, despite the stats asserting otherwise.

Since he didn’t get to slog in the final overs, Hardik Pandya thought it only fair to chip in with two wickets, including that of opener Evin Lewis. India have an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, and with two games left, Virat Kohli can now afford to make a few changes in his XI.

Here’s CricTracker’s predicted XI for India ahead of the fourth ODI at Antigua

Openers (Ajinkya Rahane and Shikhar Dhawan)

India’s opening pair haven’t caused too many worries for captain Kohli. They’ve simply gone about doing their job, putting on two century partnerships in three games. Shikhar Dhawan fell cheaply in the third ODI, but Rahane, despite being slow, got the runs for his side.

With Rohit Sharma out of the series, Rahane is cashing in well on his opportunity at the top. Dhawan and Rahane have been reliable, to say the least.

Middle order (Virat Kohli, Dinesh Karthik, Rishabh Pant and MS Dhoni)

Captain Virat Kohli will look to steady himself at the crease in the fourth ODI. Quite like the final of the Champions Trophy, Kohli was given a life but succumbed soon after. The skipper will have to make amends and lead by example.

Meanwhile, with Yuvraj Singh not in great knick, Kohli could opt for Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant to add some flair in the middle order. Both play with aggression and a marked intent to score runs. Rishabh Pant, in particular, has been impressive throughout the IPL, and he also has age on his side. This might be a perfect platform for the youngster to showcase his talent and cement his place in the Indian squad.

It was a treat to watch MS Dhoni smash the ball all round the park. The veteran was partly responsible for adding 100 runs in the last 10 overs, and thus provided India with a fighting total. As it turned out, 251 was much more than required, and credit goes to Dhoni for his responsibility out in the middle.

All-rounder (Kedar Jadhav)

Kedar Jadhav has been a great find for India in the last 12 months. Jadhav has shown time and again that he can provide the last-minute flurry of boundaries. His ability to contribute with both bat and ball on a regular basis make him an asset in the present Indian squad.

Bowlers (Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami and Kuldeep Yadav)

Although Ravichandran Ashwin isn’t being assisted by the pitches in the Caribbean, he did well to pick up a three-for after a long while. The sensation that Ashwin was during the long Indian home season of Test cricket hasn’t been transferred to the limited overs format. However, Kohli will need to stick to his premier off-spinner and prep him for the bigger challenges ahead in India’s calendar.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar went wicket-less for the first time in 10 ODIs, which goes on to show his valuable contributions to India’s bowling. He bowled with an economy rate of 3.80 through his five overs in the third ODI. Since the pitches don’t have much pace on offer, his ability to swing the ball will be more useful than that of an out and out paceman.

Mohammad Shami is too good a bowler to be warming the bench, and Virat Kohli should give him a go in the fourth ODI in place of Umesh Yadav. Shami offers both pace and swing and is also accurate with his yorkers.

Last but not the least, youngster Kuldeep Yadav is improving in leaps and bounds. Since his spectacular debut Test against Australia, he has been a resourceful bowler for the Kolkata Knight Riders, and now the national team. Kuldeep has bagged two back-to-back three-fors and it wouldn’t be surprising if he goes on to bag two more.

India surely have the upper hand in the series, and given Kohli’s trend of making regular changes in the squad, we might be in for this predicted XI.