India vs West Indies: India Poised To Pile More Misery On Struggling West Indies

West Indies and India commence a three-match One-Day International series at Queen's Park Oval in Trinidad on Friday with the visitors, even without their most prominent players, favoured to get the better of a struggling home side. Fresh from a 2-1 series triumph in England, India have opted to rest regular captain Rohit Sharma, key batter Virat Kohli, wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, all-rounder Hardik Pandya and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. That presents an opportunity for talented and eager fringe players to make the most of the stars' absences at the expense of a team that was swept 3-0 by Bangladesh in Guyana the previous week.

West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran complained about both the quality of pitches against the Bangladeshis at Providence and the early start time which he felt conspired to favour the team bowling first too heavily.

That speculation overlooks the reality that the two-time former World Cup winners have been consistently poor in the 50 overs-per-side format for several years.

Given the unsettled weather leading up to the series-opener, it is quite possible that the playing surface will not be dissimilar to the bowler-friendly conditions in Guyana.

Even with that quintet of star players opting for a rest, India enjoy an embarrassment of riches, not least in the bowling department where they possess the quality and variety to exploit both the conditions and a vulnerable West Indies batting line-up.

Pacer Mohammed Siraj and wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal are expected to lead the effort to keep pressure on their opponents, many of whom were found wanting technically and temperamentally against Bangladesh's spin-dominated attack.

For the home team, the one bit of encouraging news in the days since the