Rohit Sharma-led India gave Avesh Khan a chance to make a case in the third T20I match against West Indies as Kieron Pollard won the toss and elected to bowl first. India made some more changes in their playing XI where Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer and Shardul Thakur have been included after Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant was rested for the T20I series finale.
Avesh Khan was roped in for Rs 10 crore by Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL mega auction and he will look to justify his worth in his debut T20I match.
“Feels good to bat first given that we did well in the last game. We have some guys missing. We have four changes: Virat, Bhuvi. Pant and Chahal misses. Avesh Khan makes his debut. Ruturaj and Ishan will open the batting. There is a lot of cricket ahead of us and the challenge for the World Cup would be to make sure we are mentally and physically fresh. We have an eye on that but at the moment everything looks fine and we are just taking it one game at a time,” Indian captain Rohit said before the match.
“We are going to bowl first. Nothing much has changed in these last two games, the ball comes onto the bat nicely. We have four changes: Walsh, Fabian, Drakes and Hope come back in. When we look at the two games that we lost, we have batted well but we faltered during our fielding and bowling at the death. It is also an opportunity for the guys to have a taste of the conditions and see what they can offer,” West Indies' skipper Pollard said.
Kieron Pollard-led West Indies will have nothing to lose as they take on the in-form Men in Blue in the third and last T20I of the series. The Men in Maroon have endured a horrendous time so far in this tour, having lost all five games so far. Nonetheless, they would like to do well in order end their campaign on a winning note. On the other hand, India, who clinched the ODI series 3-0, won’t mind scripting another clean sweep.
IND vs WI Head to Head
Overall games - 19, India -12, West Indies - 6, NR -1
Pitch Report:
Considering the first two games, the Eden Gardens track has been pretty even so far. The likes of Ravi Bishnoi and Roston Chase have been able to generate spin from the surface. At the same time, dashers like Rohit Sharma, Nicolas Pooran and Rovman Powell have enjoyed batting on the same track. With the dew coming into play, the toss-winning captain must elect to field first.
India's playing XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan(w), Rohit Sharma(c), Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Harshal Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan.
West Indies' playing XI: Kyle Mayers, Shai Hope, Nicholas Pooran(w), Rovman Powell, Kieron Pollard(c), Jason Holder, Roston Chase, Romario Shepherd, Dominic Drakes, Fabian Allen, Hayden Walsh.
