Windies desperate to draw series

CARLOS Brathwaite said West Indies will look for a consistent batting performance in an effort to level the three-match One-Day International series against India, in the third and final match at the Queen's Park Oval in St Clair, at 9.30 am today.

Rain may play a factor in today's match as a tropical wave is expected to affect TT from 10 am.

After the first match, in Guyana, was washed out on Thursday, India took the lead in the series with a 59-run victory on the Duckworth-Lewis method at the Oval on Sunday.

Yesterday, after a training session at the Oval, Brathwaite said, "Obviously we drew the last series against England at home as well, and going into the last game, it is just for us to get the batting right in both parts...we either get good starts and throw it away at the back end, or we don't get good starts and then run it close because of a rearguard effort."

Brathwaite said poor sessions during a match continue to cost the team.

However, he remains hopeful the Caribbean boys can get it right.

"I don't think that we are that far away and I don't think we are as bad as the results make it out to be.

"We just miss and continue to miss key points in the game. If you look back at the (2019) World Cup it was the same thing, and if we look at the game the other day, we weren't cruising, but we were in a good position and then we lost three or four quick wickets that knocked the wind out of our sails."

The shot selection of the West Indies batsmen has let them down repeatedly. Brathwaite said there is not much that could be done during a tour, and the players must work with their respective franchises in the regional four-day tournament.

"It's practice, it is conversation (that is required). If I am brutally honest, it is not much you can change on an international tour, (so) I guess that is a challenge for the franchises at the lower level. When the players go back down to the franchises...do enough work and get enough information from the guys up top and start to implement stuff.

"Once we get on tour it is about maintaining and trying to get your mind right."

On Sunday in the second ODI, West Indies did well to limit India to 279/7 in 50 overs, as a score of 300-plus looked possible. India were motoring along at 226/3 in the 42nd over, but when captain Virat Kohli fell for 120 the innings lost some steam. Pacer Brathwaite was the top bowler ending with 3/53 in ten overs.

Chasing a revised target of 270 in 46 overs because of rain, West Indies were in with a solid chance of winning when they were 179/4 in the 35th over.

A familiar batting collapse then followed as the regional team slumped to 182/8 in the 37th over. The tail hung around a bit, but West Indies were dismissed for 210 in 42 overs, with opener Evin Lewis scoring 65 and fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar snatching 4/31 in eight overs.

SQUADS

WEST INDIES: Jason Holder (captain), John Campbell, Evin Lewis, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, Roston Chase, Fabian Allen, Carlos Brathwaite, Keemo Paul, Chris Gayle, Sheldon Cottrell, Oshane Thomas, Shai Hope, Kemar Roach.

INDIA: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kedar Jadhav, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Navdeep Saini.