Now Reading: India face pace puzzle in second ODI against West Indies
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India face pace puzzle in second ODI against West Indies
Corrected 30 September 2026: an internal source label was removed from the source notes, and our separate preview of this match has been merged into this one.
The Story in Brief
India aim to seal the three-match ODI series against the West Indies in the second game at Guwahati on Wednesday, but an unsettled pace attack is a concern. Virat Kohli, who scored a record 74-ball century in the opener, will be in focus after becoming the second Indian after Sachin Tendulkar to cross 15,000 international runs. Skipper Shubman Gill also struck a hundred as India chased 296 in under 42 overs.
The pace department looked unconvincing without Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya. Nitish Kumar Reddy, returning from injury, struggled with rhythm and conceded 18 runs from an over, allowing West Indies opener Justin Greaves to score a maiden ODI hundred. India may restore Mohammed Siraj or hand a debut to Jammu and Kashmir pacer Auqib Nabi. For the West Indies, Wednesday is a must-win to keep the series alive, their last ODI series win in India was in 2002.
Update, 30 September 2026: Cricbuzz reported that West Indies opener Justin Greaves has been ruled out of the second ODI due to a calf injury, and that batting coach Floyd Reifer said the middle order needs to regain consistency. Rediff.com also quoted Reifer urging greater middle-order responsibility ahead of the World Cup Qualifier.
Update, 30 September 2026: West Indies set India a target of 406 after John Campbell, Shai Hope and Amir Jangoo each scored centuries, m9.news reported. India chased it down in 43.3 overs, winning by eight wickets and sealing the series, according to m9.news and t2online.in. Shubman Gill scored 223 not out off 133 balls, the fastest double century in ODIs, t2online.in said.
Indian Opinion Analysis
All three sources treat this as a straight preview, with sports.ndtv.com and economictimes.indiatimes.com offering identical framing: India's batting power is reassuring, but the pace attack is unsettled. Economic Times adds granular critique of Nitish Kumar Reddy's costly spell, quoting bowling coach Morkel on development, and notes the reserve in Siraj or Nabi. No source challenges India's experimental approach against weak opposition, though the pattern raises a question: will confidence from batting centuries mask bowling vulnerabilities that stronger teams could exploit? The second ODI in Guwahati on Wednesday will test whether India persists with the all-rounder experiment or reverts to specialist bowlers.
Corrected 30 September 2026: an internal source label was removed from the source notes, and our separate preview of this match has been merged into this one.
Coverage: 12 sources, 12 neutral
Sources (12): sports.ndtv.com (neutral report), economictimes.indiatimes.com (neutral report), sports.ndtv.com (2) (neutral report), rediff.com (neutral report), thehindu.com (neutral report), m9.news (neutral report), cricbuzz.com (neutral report), ndtv.com (neutral report), ndtv.com (2) (neutral report), rediff.com (2) (neutral report), m9.news (2) (neutral report), t2online.in (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 12 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
Updated: this story now draws on 12 sources.
