West Indies v India
Sunday 23 July, 14:30
TV: live on BT Sport
Small mercy for hosts
West Indies captain Nic Pooran said defeat by three runs in the first match "felt like a win". That's how low the bar is for this West Indies side. Pooran was also excited that they had managed to bat for a full 50 overs for only the seventh time since the last World Cup.
Going after a target of 309, it may be instructive as to focus on why they didn't actually win considering the strong platform that Kyle Mayers and Shamarh Broks built. Batters once again failing to take responsibility to finish the job is a possible reason.
Windies were decent with the ball, though. They looked like conceding a monster total but restricted India to 83 off the last 15 overs, taking five wickets. Alzarri Joseph and Gudakesh Motie were the pick of the home bowlers with two wickets apiece.
Probable XI: Hope, Mayers, Brooks, King, Pooran, Powell, Hosein, Shepherd, Joseph, Motie, Seales
India should improve
India should be happy with their performance. With no preparation or acclimatisation time and a reserve squad to pick from, they were strong. They should be much better for the run.
They can tweak their XI to make them even stronger. Ravi Jadeja was a surprise omission. He could come back in at the expense of Axar Patel. Or both could play if the pitch is one which slows up and rewards bowlers who take pace off.
They went for the extra batter in the first match, combining Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer. Iyer continued his reliable form with a half-century. Samson looks vulnerable with Hooda's part-time spin a useful option.
Stand-in captain Shikhar Dhawan led from the front with a man of the match 94. Remember, there is no Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant or Jasprit Bumrah.
Possible XI: Dhawan, Gill, Shreyas, Yadav, Hooda, Jadeja, Axar, Shardul, Krishna, Siraj, Chahal
Pitch report
The Queens Park surface had an old-fashioned sheen to it before a ball was bowled. But it proved to be weak veneer. Once work got underway it slowed up. West Indies correctly identified that hitting a back of a length with pace off made runscoring hard.
If we see something similar this could be an attritional fight. The side batting first is likely to go very hard while the surface is at its best and that could make for a reasonable strategy. Going under runs after that point with both teams expected to slow up is a pointer. There's also a pot of value at even money that West Indies score fastest in the first 15. That is unlikely to be cut if they bat first. Bet the Sportsbook markets here.
Sportsbook are clearly expecting runs. The 1/6 that both teams score 250 looks very short indeed. That means we could get the chance to short West Indies runs at value prices. If they bat first we may be able to under the runs par line in the mid 260s.
West Indies have passed 260 batting first five times in 16 across all conditions in the last three years. their average run rate has them down for bang on 240. The first-innings runs market is here. Coach Phil Simmons is likely to be disappointed that the fast and true surface he expected may not have materialised.
Trade chance
India are 1.364/11 with West Indies 3.505/2. That's as expected. There could be room for a trade on the West Indies, though, considering their decent effort.
They would have to bat first, though, and recognise the advantage of putting their foot down in the first 15. That could put them on target for something big before India's spinners get to work. That may force the price down to the 2.809/5 region.
As we said before game one, we'd take anything close to 1.705/7 India in-play. We got that and more and fingers crossed for the same.
Tops value
Dhawan topped for India and he has been boosted to 7/2 with Sportsbook for a repeat. He is the sort of player who routinely puts back-to-back scores together. Shubmann Gill, who also notched a fifty, is 7/2 with Shreyas 4/1.
For West Indies, Brooks' show of good form will be welcome and the 9/2 fits the bill on win rate. Pooran is poor value at 9/2.
If we're right about the surface slowing, India spinners Yuz Chahal and Ravi Jadeja have appeal on the man of the match market at 9/1 and 12/1 respectively. Bet the Sportsbook markets here.