India vs West Indies: Rahul Dravid and Co is having trouble choosing a third pacer as India get ready for the upcoming two-match Test series vs WI. For the coveted berth in the bowling lineup, Jaydev Unadkat, Mukesh Kumar, and Navdeep Saini are engaged in a three-way battle.
Windsor Park in the Dominican Republic’s city of Roseau is not as well-known as parks in the West Indies like Sabina Park or Kensington Oval.
It has only hosted five Tests, four ODIs, and an equal number of T20Is, therefore there isn’t much recent information on the pitch’s conduct.
The West Indies have only triumphed in one of the five Tests held here, against Zimbabwe, so recent history also doesn’t favour them. Pakistan won the final Test played here in 2017 by a score of 101 runs in just three days.
In the preceding Test, Pakistan’s pacers Mohammed Amir, Hasan Ali, and Mohammed Abbas each took 11 wickets, while Yasir Shah’s leg spin contributed nine more over the course of two innings.
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India is set to field both of its expert spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, in light of the circumstances and their prior performances.
Mohammed Siraj will be accompanied by Shardul Thakur, a pace spearhead who is renowned for his batting power and excellent performance in the WTC final in England.
For the fifth bowling position, Axar Patel, an all-around player similar to Ravindra Jadeja, is a candidate. However, it is advisable to have a third pacer in the lineup on the majority of Caribbean tracks.
The selection of the fifth bowler, who may be a third pacer, won’t be simple because each of the three candidates has specific strengths.
Navdeep Saini, who is progressively rediscovering his rhythm, gives the squad pace and endurance by being able to bowl for extended periods of time without sacrificing speed. With the classic Dukes ball, his pace might be useful on slower tracks.
Then there is Jaydev Unadkat, a legend of the Ranji Trophy, who recently made his Test cricket comeback against Bangladesh after an absence of 12 years following his debut in 2010.
Unadkat can move the ball across right-handers while also keeping a straight line when necessary because to the diversity added by his left-arm angle.
Last but not least, Mukesh Kumar, a seamer from Bengal who is 29 years old, has made significant progress over the course of the last three domestic seasons. He has the capacity to extract movement from the surface by swinging the fresh ball both directions.
While Mukesh’s early pace is approximately 130 kmph, it is unknown how effective he will be with the old ball in later stints when his velocity may somewhat drop.
The final decision about the third pacer’s position will be made by captain Rohit Sharma, who will take into account the players’ current form in the nets and the weather on the eve of the Test match.
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