Kanpur: Unfavourable bowling conditions had pegged them back in the last match but India will look to assert their supremacy and clinch the series against the West Indies when the two teams clash in the decisive third One-day International, here on Wednesday. India have been a dominant force in this contest since West Indies' arrival to the country but the hosts suffered a surprise two-wicket defeat in Visakhapatnam, failing to defend a competitive total under difficult conditions. That victory must have boosted confidence of the West Indies who would now aim to leave the country by pocketing at least the ODI series, following their debacle in the Tests. They, for the first time on this tour, will approach a match with self belief and confidence.
For India, it is last international match at home before they embark on a challenging tour against South Africa and they would like to finish this series on a high. The Indian batting line-up sports a solid look. Barring a few individuals, the batting department is in great form in the recent past. The top three -- Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni -- have been the real force behind India's batting. With scores of 86 and 99 in the two matches played so far, Kohli, in particular, has been in scintillating form. But it is the form of Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina in the middle order which will be a cause of concern for Dhoni ahead of the series decider. Both Dhawan and Yuvraj have some work to do as they have been throwing their wickets away after getting starts. But Dhoni, who struck a quick-fire 51 in the last to propel India to 288, backed Yuvraj to strike form in the upcoming matches, terming the left-hander as vital cog in India's middle-order.
West Indies, on the other hand, did just enough to secure the win in the second match. Kieran Powell, who has replaced injured Chris Gayle in the playing eleven, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons and Darren Sammy scored crucial half-centuries to help the Caribbean side in securing their maiden win on the tour. However, one thing which would be worrying skipper Dwayne Bravo is his batsmen's inability to convert the starts into big scores and come tomorrow he would be hoping for a substantial contribution from one of his top-order batsmen. Even though bowling still remains a concern for West Indies, the visiting bowling attack played a key role in keeping the series alive with an improved showing towards the end of the last match to restrict India to 288, who at one stage were on 194 for 3 in the 36th over, with Kohli on course for an 18th ODI century.
