Following a morale-boosting 2-1 win over Jos Buttler’s men in the recently held ODI series against England, India is set to tour the West Indies for a three-match long One Day Internationals series. The games will be held at Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain (Trinidad) on July 22, 24 & 27.
Rishab Pant’s hundred steered India to a brilliant win this Sunday, and his batting form is a massive plus. Other positives for India include Hardik’s all-round rejuvenation and an in-form bowling unit.
The Windies, on the other hand, have their task cut out. Barring Pooran and Gudakesh Motie, players were not able to deliver as the Caribbean came crashing down against Bangladesh by 3-0.
Pooran has to find a way to rid his side of their overall woes. Jason Holder’s comeback may help a bit.
Queen’s Park Oval Information
Capacity: 25000 spectators
Location: Port of Spain, Trinidad.
Established in: 1896
Queen’s Park Oval, Pitch Report
The bowlers will certainly enjoy bowling on the tinder-dry 22-yards that Port of Spain offers. The surface is often defined as ‘tacky’ and tends to assist the spinners as the game progresses.
Overall, an even contest between bat and ball can be expected. However, that is also subject to how the middle-order of both sides deals with spin.
ODI records
64 ODIs have been held at this stadium in the past. 34 have been won by the chasing team while the team batting 1st has won 30.
The highest score on the ground is Team India’s 413/5 that came in 2007. The average score, however, is just 223 and thirty-nine of the 64 ODIs have seen scores below 250.
Kohli has smacked record centuries (3) at the ground and Brian Lara’s 146* stays the highest individual score.
Watch: Virat Kohli & Rishabh Pant gifts a champagne bottle to Ravi Shastri
Weather Forecast
The skies are expected to be partly cloudy and can offer some seam/swing movement which isn’t common at Queen’s Park Oval. Nonetheless, the games should go on without much interruption by the rain.
Temperatures will range from 25 degrees Celsius to 31 degrees celsius. The crowd and the players will enjoy the moderate, cool winds that will blow over the city.