India lead the three-match T20I series against the West Indies 1-0. Rohit & Co. will be eyeing to clinch the series before it goes to the decider.
Nothing seems to be working for the West Indies, except the Indian Premier League (IPL) deals their players have managed to seal at the recent auction. As a team, the visitors have lost four on the trot in the 2022 tour of India. Another defeat in the second T20 International match on Friday will hand India another series win. Rohit Sharma's India had blanked the Windies 3-0 in the preceding ODIs.
Kieron Pollard, one of the big names on the Mumbai Indians roster, have not only lost the battle of one-upmanship against his IPL team captain Rohit Sharma, but has also failed to perform. A duck and 21 not out. His case has been compromised by fitness issues too. So, when the two teams take the field at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday, the focus will be on Kieron Pollard, and of course Rohit Sharma -- two captains with contrasting fortunes.
Truth be told, the Windies were expected to test India in their favourite format with a veritable ensemble of globe-trotting T20 mercenaries in their ranks. But they were outclassed in the first T20I by six wickets even as Pollard make their 'dew' concerns heard.
For India, the only worry seems to be the form of former captain Virat Kohli. The batting great, still looking for 61st international ton, has scores of 8, 18, 0 and 17 so far. But the hosts have been blessed by the emergence of a new crop of match-winners. Ravi Bishnoi being the latest!. The 21-year-old spun his way to the player of the match award with figures of 2/17 in the first T20I.
India lead West Indies 11-6 in the T20Is head-to-head record. Friday's meeting will be their 19th. In 2016, an IND vs WI match ended as no result. India have defeated West Indies nine times in their ten previous meetings. Windies last beat India on 08-12-2019 in Thiruvananthapuram.
Overall, India have played 154 T20Is, winning 99 times and losing 51. Four matches have ended as no results. They are on a seven-match winning run. Their last defeat was against New Zealand in an ICC T20 World Cup 2021 match.
Windies have so far played 158 T20I matches. They have won 68 times and lost 81. Nine T20I matches featuring Windies have ended as no results.
Match: 2nd T20I match of the West Indies' tour of India 2022.
Date: February 18 (Friday), 2022
Time: 7:00 PM IST
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
TV Channels: Star Sports 1/HD, Star Sports 1 Hindi/HD, Star Sports 1 Tamil, Star Sports 1 Telugu, Star Sports 1 Kannada.
Live Streaming: Disney+ Hotstar
The pre-match show starts at 6:00 PM IST.
India: Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar/Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal.
West Indies: Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Rovman Powell, Kieron Pollard (c), Jason Holder, Fabian Allen, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Akeal Hosein, Sheldon Cottrell.
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wk), Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Siraj, Avesh Khan, Ishan Kishan, Venkatesh Iyer, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel.
West Indies: Kieron Pollard (c), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Jason Holder, Shai Hope (wk), Akeal Hosein, Brandon King, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Hayden Walsh, Rovman Powell, Roston Chase, Kyle Mayers, Sheldon Cottrell, Dominic Drakes.