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TAROUBA, Trinidad: West Indies lost their first three wickets with only 17 on the scoreboard and never recovered as India won the final one-day international by the huge margin of 200 runs to clinch the three-match series 2-1 on Tuesday.
A clinical India outclassed West Indies by a whopping 200 runs in the third ODI to win the series 2-1 but the lingering questions on the team combination ahead of the World Cup remained in the horizon despite four half-centuries and a top notch bowling effort on Tuesday. Skipper Rohit Sharma and senior pro Virat Kohli once again opted out to give World Cup hopefuls a fair go but the dominant result isn't a good enough indication that all boxes have been ticked as the team looks far from settled.
For the second match running, Hardik Pandya led the Indian team in the ODI series against West Indies on Tuesday. He stood in for Rohit Sharma in the second ODI, which the team lost. After comprehensively winning the first ODI against West Indies in Barbados, the Indian team were handed a defeat in the second match at the same venue as the hosts valiantly fought back. West Indies captain Shai Hope won the toss and opted to field against India in the third and final ODI of the three-match series at the Brian Lara Stadium.
India chose to go without Virat Kohli and regular skipper Rohit Sharma yet again in the must-win third ODI against West Indies in Trinidad on Tuesday. The duo had been rested for the second ODI against West Indies which India lost as the hosts levelled the three-match series 1-1. At the toss, Hardik Pandya came, which made it apparent that Rohit Sharma was not in the XI. When he was asked about whether Kohli was playing or not, Pandya gave this answer: "Two changes for us. Ruturaj comes in place of Umran and Unadkat comes in place of Axar. Going to the decider the boys are pumped up and looking forward to the game. Looks good (the surface), I don't think much will change, batting first gives a good opportunity for us to set a good total."
After the second ODI debacle against West Indies, the Indian team regroups for the third and final match of the series, hoping to secure a 2-1 win. It was the Indian batting unit that witnessed a stunning collapse in the second match, with the team suffering a 6-wicket defeat. There was much uproar over the absence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from playing XI in the match. With the duo expected to be drafted back into the team, former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has urged the management to not drop Sanju Samson.
Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya said that he is ready to take up a significantly higher bowling workload as he builds towards the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at home from October 5 to November 19, but added that he is still "a turtle, not a rabbit". The all-rounder is currently with India's white-ball squad for series in West Indies, he had a full two months off after Indian Premier League (IPL) concluded on May 29. In this period, he "switched off" for a month and underwent physical conditioning for three weeks at the National Cricket Academy where there was equal focus on both skill and fitness.
Team India faced a shocking six-wicket defeat against West Indies in the second ODI of the three-match series on Saturday. With the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli being rested, the team's captaincy was handed over to Hardik Pandya, who failed to guide the Men in Blue to victory. Asked to bat first, India were bundled out for 181 and later, West Indies chased down the target in just 36.4 overs. In the entire match, the hosts had an upper hand over India but that also could not change the cheerful atmosphere in the visitors' camp.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri, in June, made an interesting observation regarding India allrounder Hardik Pandya. While he is now increasingly becoming the no. 1 choice for the T20I captain's role, he is nowhere near the Test match squad. Shastri, while commenting on the subject, said that Pandya's body is not ready for the longest format. "His body cannot cope with Test cricket. Let's be very clear about that," Shastri told The Week. "After the World Cup, if his body is fit enough, he should take over captaincy in white-ball cricket. There are seniors ready to be phased out and there are youngsters ready."