India completed their 2022 England tour by winning both ODI and T20I series and drawing the Test series to 2-2. Now they turn attention to their next assignment, eight-match white-ball tour to West Indies. In the India tour of the West Indies, there will be series of three ODI matches starting on July 22 and five T20Is from July 29 to August 7.
India hosted West Indies in six-match white-ball series in February 2022 and dominated the opponents on all six occasions. But both the teams have gone through a lot of changes since then and there are many changes to both the team for this upcoming series as well. So, it will be a mouth-watering clash for the cricketing fraternity. India is a clear favourite to win both ODI and T20I series and here are five reasons why they will dominate West Indies.
Let’s look at the 5 Reasons Why India is the Strong Contender to Win the West Indies vs India:
- India’s current form
As the latest cricket news suggests, India ranks first in ICC Men’s T20I teams’ charts, whereas West Indies are struggling in the seventh position. There is a similar gap in ODI rankings as well, with India in number three position and West Indies in number nine.
Before winning the recent white-ball series against England, India smashed Ireland by 2-0 in the T20I series. They drew 2-2 with South Africa at home with many senior key players missing. India also beat Sri Lanka and West Indies at home before the Indian Premier League 2022. India is yet to suffer a series defeat in T20I cricket in 2022.
- West Indies’ home series loss against Bangladesh
West Indies suffered a shock 0-3 defeat against Bangladesh in ODIs at home. There are only two changes for the series against India and that will be a big morale effect on them.
They will be boosted from the return of star all-rounder Jason Holder but won’t find anything positive before the India series.
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- India’s strength in the batting lineup
India is missing star batters Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Rishabh Pant for the ODI series. But they are still looking strong with the return of Shikhar Dhawan, Sanju Samson, and Shubman Gill. Dhawan is appointed as skipper and star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja as his deputy.
Both Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan are included in the squad and will be fighting for an opening spot alongside Dhawan. Suryakumar Yadav and Shreyas Iyer are now regular starters for the Indian middle-order and will be partnered with Samson.
- Deepak Hooda’s form in T20I cricket
The 27-year-old all-rounder shocked everyone with his consistently big performances against Ireland and England in T20I cricket. He always found it difficult to get into starting eleven with so much competition in the middle-order setup. But now he will be a regular part of the T20I setup for the West Indies vs India series.
Hooda has scored 205 runs in just six T20I matches at an average of 68.3 and a strike rate of 172.3. He smashed his maiden century last month and is also included in the ODI squad for the West Indies tour.
- KL Rahul returns
India will be extra boosted in T20I matches with a return of vice-captain and star opener KL Rahul. Known as Mr Consistent, he finished IPL 2022 season as the second highest run-scorer with 616 runs in 15 matches at an average of 51.33 and a strike rate of 135.38.
He missed India’s recent matches after suffering a groin injury just a day before the South Africa series last month. But he is unlikely to take any time to settle in the international scenes and will be eager to gain his fitness before the upcoming 2022 T20 World Cup in October.