India vs West Indies 2nd ODI: Rohit Sharma expected to experiment again as IND look to seal series

1-0 ahead in the three-match ODI series, India will be looking to clinch an unassailable lead when they take on hosts West Indies in the second match on Saturday at the Kensington Oval in Barbados.

Against a team that has failed to qualify for the World Cup, for the first time in history, and are missing star players like Nicholas Pooran and Jason Holder, the world No 3 India, who are also the hosts of the World Cup in October-November, are firm favourites to seal the series with one game to go at Trinidad.

However, the focus isn’t only on the results for India. Of course, you don’t want to lose matches and you don’t want to lose momentum going into a mega tournament like the World Cup, but in an assignment where you are already seen as the winners even before competing, it’s inevitable that you experiment and zero in on your combinations.

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Experimentation is even more important for India as they continue to miss some of the key players. Jasprit Bumrah has been declared fit by BCCI secretary Jay Shah, but the pacer hasn’t played any cricket since September 2022. KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant are all rehabilitating at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and there’s no guarantee when they will be back.

Even if they are back, one can’t be sure there will be no further injuries. India have had a poor track record of injuries in the last one year and no risks can be taken.

In that context captain Rohit Sharma was quick to do batting experiments in the first ODI as he dropped himself down to No 7 in India’s five-wicket win and Virat Kohli didn’t even get to bat.

Starting the ODI series on a winning note