India take on the West Indies in the first Test of the two-match series scheduled between the two teams on Thursday, October 2. The first game will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The pitch here offers a lot for the spinners, and this may favor the home team more than the visitors. While the West Indies have faced challenges in recent years and are working to regain their former strength, India will aim to make the most of home advantage and secure a 2-0 series win.
The Men in Blue will be led by Shubman Gill. He was their opener in the recently concluded Asia Cup as well. Gill was a part of the side that won the trophy by beating nemesis Pakistan in the final. He, along with Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav, had just three days off between matches. Nonetheless, Gill is a top batter and showed his class in India's tour of England earlier this year. He scored four centuries. In Ahmedabad, he will be expected to lead from the front and help his team set up a big total on the board, no matter if they are batting first or second.
A lot will rest on the able shoulders of Shai Hope for the West Indies, since he appears to be among the few players who know how to operate in these conditions. Hope is among the best batters in the world, and though he also has Brandon King and Tagenarine Chanderpaul to assist him, things will not be easy in these spin-friendly conditions. The West Indian bowling unit is relatively inexperienced, and their recent results, such as their losses to Nepal 1-2 in T20 cricket, suggest they are still searching for consistency. Even though it was a different playing XI against Nepal, this indicates the ongoing development of cricketing quality in the Caribbean islands.
Predicted Teams
IND: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudharsan, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav.
WI: Alick Athanaze, Tagerine Chanderpaul, Brandon King, Shai Hope (wk), Kevlon Anderson, Roston Chase (c), Justin Greaves, Jomel Warrican, Jayden Seales, Anderson Phillip, Khary Pierre.
Key Players
Kuldeep Yadav (IND): Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav picked up four wickets against Pakistan in the final of the Asia Cup. He comes into this match in a rich vein of form. The Uttar Pradesh cricketer has had to wait a lot for chances to come his way, but has impressed everyone with his accuracy. Yadav is a big turner of the ball and can trouble both right-handers and left-handers with his subtle variations of pace as well.
Roston Chase (WI): Skipper Roston Chase, who is among the best bowling all-rounders in the West Indies, will have to lead from the front and take up a lot of responsibility in this outing. Chase is among the very few players in the Windies setup who have played in India before. He knows these conditions well. While batting in the lower order, Chase can help his team set up big totals. With the ball in hand, he can stop runs and bowl economical lines and lengths while setting good fields.
Match Prediction
The Windies are not expected to challenge India. While they have limited experience in their ranks and few have played in the Indian subcontinent, their team has shown flashes of potential in previous performances. Playing in India is extremely challenging for overseas players, due to unfamiliar heat and spin-friendly conditions. India are highly skilled in both these aspects and are favored in this match, but the Windies could still put up spirited resistance.