The West Indies are currently ranked No.8 in the ICC’s ODI rankings of the international teams. In T20I, their ranking is even lower (10th) and just a shade better than Zimbabwe among Test playing nations. These are perhaps enough to indicate that the two-time World Champions - both in ODI s and T20Is - are no longer the force to reckon with they once used to be. Even more significantly, winning a white ball series in India has been almost impossible for the teams from the Caribbean in nearly two decades Also Read | Fit again Rohit Sharma Returns for West Indies Series; Comeback for Kuldeep, Maiden Call-up for Ravi
The last time when West Indies won an ODI series in India (2002-03 by a very tight margin of 4-3 which was otherwise a very competitive series) the senior pros of the current Indian team - Rohit Sharma, former captain Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dawn – had not even forayed into the domestic scene. And yet, Chief selector Che tan Sharma and his colleagues seems to have rated the threat from this West Indian side quite highly; hence that the reason they have been hesitant to experiment when they announced similar squads for both the white-ball formats. The thinking from the selectors again speaks of a defensive mindset. Especially, in the batting department, they are still dependent on the top three to win matches. Of course, the unexpected clean sweep to South Africa must have forced the selectors and team management on the back foot, but it still doesn’t make sense to go with the same tried and trusted triumvirate of top-order batting which has ironically been India’s biggest strength as well weakness in its white-ball cricket for over a decade Also Read | India vs West Indies 2022: WI Recall Roach, Bonner And King For ODI Series
Of course, the option to rest the captain Rohit was never there. Dayan can’t be given a break either after his prolific show in South Africa and the fact that he doesn’t feature either in Test or T20 format regularly. So, the only batsman who could have been given a much-needed break was Kohl i, who, perhaps, needs a break desperately at this point of time than anyone else from the current team for what he has been going through off the field for the last couple of months. That was the only possible window where the former captain could have been asked to take a break as he is unlikely to miss the Test series, and subsequently the T20 series against Sri Lanka which is slotted just before the Also Read | How Dame Luck Eluded Captain Shot at Immortality
All-rounder Hardin Panda sustained fitness struggle in recent times seems to have compelled selectors to try out as many players as replacements and the entry of Panda former Kanji teammate Deepak can be seen in that direction. However, the selectors once again seem to be tentative as they have picked for the ODI leg and not for T20 matches. Apparently, selectors have made-up their mind that Venkatesh is not yet ready for the 50-over format and must stick to the shortest format for the time being. The way it has been discarded after just two matches in South Africa doesn’t speak volumes about the selectors’ approach. If they were wrong in getting carried away by Kolkata Knight Rider’s all-rounder’s performance in the 2021, aren’t they doing the same with who scored just 160 runs in 12 matches for Punjab Kings in 2021 which included a solitary fifty? The selectors may have been impressed by recent form ever since switched his base in first class cricket from Vadodara to Rajasthan where he was as the captain for the Vijay Trophy, a tournament in which he scored 198 in six matches - including a century against Karnataka. Was part of the Indian squad for the last time in 2017-18, (but could not break into the final eleven) must be allowed to play all the matches without the fear of failure
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