In Stats: The Virat Threat & Other Areas WI Need to Address

But against West Indies, the Indian team cannot afford to be ‘not switched on completely’ at Manchester.

Team India will aim to take one step closer to securing a semi-final berth in the ICC World Cup 2019 when they take on the West Indies in Match 34 on Thursday, 27 June.

Virat Kohli’s side is undefeated so far in the competition, having defeated South Africa, Australia, Pakistan and Afghanistan, while splitting points with New Zealand. The West Indies meanwhile are faced with a must-win scenario; they defeated Pakistan in their tournament opener, but have since lost four matches, while also splitting points with South Africa in a rain-affected match.

The West Indies are barely alive in the race and must win every one of their remaining matches to stand a chance to progress to the semi-finals.

Lessons from Afghanistan Match: Switch On

A glance at the score sheet of Team India’s previous outing will reveal that they were made to work hard for the win. Having opted to bat first, Team India managed to score a paltry 224 for 8 in their allotted 50 overs, which their opponents Afghanistan came very close to chasing down. In the context of Team India’s batting, it wasn’t the lack of ability, but a case of the Indian batsmen not being switched on sufficiently and showing enough positive intent – particularly against the spinners.

Against West Indies on Thursday, the Indian team cannot afford to be ‘not switched on completely’. In this coming fixture, they will not be tested by spin, but by pace; the Indian batsmen need to be aware that pace can cause plenty of damage in real quick time. For most part of this World Cup, the West Indies have bowled quick, and have generously employed the short-ball tactic; the Indian batsmen need to have a definite plan to counter the pace and bounce the West Indies bowlers can be expected to unleash.

Team India Dominate Recent Meetings Against West Indies

Many years ago, West Indies were a fearsome side; before the calendar turned over to the 1990s, the West Indies had a 27-6 win-loss record against India. But in the years that have followed, Team India have pulled ahead and have a 53-35 win-loss record against the West Indies. So far in this decade, India’s win-loss record against the West Indies reads 21-8.

Team India has prevailed over the West Indies in recent World Cup meetings too; Sachin Tendulkar’s 70 powered Team India to a 5-wicket win in the 1996 World Cup, Yuvraj Singh’s 113 set up India’s 80-run win in 2011, and most recently in 2015 a clinical effort by the Indian bowlers – led by Mohammed Shami – helped dismiss the West Indies for 182 which Team India’s batsmen chased down quite comfortably.

Where the West Indies are concerned, they must pay attention to the following:

Poor Record at Old Trafford

The West Indies haven’t won an international match at the Old Trafford in Manchester since 1988. They have since played 8 matches – lost 7 and drew 1. West Indies had the opportunity to break that streak in the previous match against New Zealand, but fell agonisingly short.

Batsmen Need to Drop to a Lower Scoring Gear

If West Indies hope to end their poor streak of results at Old Trafford, their batsmen need to first and foremost add another gear to their batting. The West Indies have the highest boundary percentage among all teams this World Cup; they are the only team who have scored more than half their runs in boundaries. That’s pretty much out of the T20 manual of batting – and might not work in ODIs at all times. The West Indies batsmen need to realise there is an urgent need to add a lower gear to their batting; they need to learn to graft, take the singles and build an innings.

Biggest Threats for West Indies

The West Indies will know all too well which players in Team India’s ranks pose the biggest threat. Team India’s opener Rohit Sharma and captain Virat Kohli had a field day when the boys from the Caribbean arrived in India last year. Where Rohit scored two hundreds and a fifty in five matches, Virat scored three hundreds and amassed 453 runs in the five-match series.

In fact, Virat has repeatedly hurt the West Indies; he now has 7 ODI hundred against the boys from the Caribbean – more than any other batsman has ever scored against them.

Virat has batted extremely well so far in the World Cup, without actually posting a three-figure score. Come Thursday, is the Indian captain fancying an 8th ODI hundred against the West Indies?

Jason Holder and company, beware!