India vs West Indies: Will this spinner make it to the second Test? trace

Team India started their new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle with a bang, defeating West Indies in the first Test inside three days to take a 1-0 lead in the 2-match Test series. The action has now shifted to Port of Spain for the 2nd Test. Ravichandran Ashwin was at the forefront of the ball for India and took 12 wickets in the match. Ravindra Jadeja also contributed in this and as such, the Indian management is looking to include Axar Patel as the third spinner for the second Test match.

The spinners played a key role in the previous match, taking 20 of the 24 wickets that fell, with Ashwin alone taking 12 wickets (5/60 and 7/71). The pitch started helping the spinners early in the match and the West Indies were never able to counter the Indian spinners.

Looking at the possibility of a similar situation in Port of Spain, Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma are now looking to add a third spinner in the form of Axar Patel, who has proved himself on a spin-friendly track. In his 12 Test matches so far, Akshar has taken 50 wickets at an average of 17.16, including five five-wicket hauls. His batting has also improved a lot and could offer a viable all-round option in the lower order.

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As far as the fast bowlers are concerned, Mohammad Siraj was good in the first Test and got good support from Shardul Thakur. So, if Akshar is indeed included in the playing XI, then Jaydev Unadkat could be the bowler to miss.

However, the management will closely watch the circumstances before taking a final call on the playing XI. Rain has been predicted in Port of Spain ahead of the match on July 20, which could affect all days’ play. So, if the conditions are moist and cloudy then seamers can come in handy.

India Test Team: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), KS Bharat (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Akshar Patel, Mo. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.