In a series replete with standout individual performances, a few big names missed out on making it into this combined India-West Indies XI.
The rubber was closely contested, with the winner only determined in the penultimate over of the final game, while a slew of standout individual performances – there were four centuries and a hat-trick – meant plenty of players put their hands up for selection
Virat Kohli (shock horror) did not make the cut, despite a stellar half-century in the deciding game, nor did his opposite number Kieron Pollard, whose six-studded 74* in the decider was his first half-century in three years. Here is Wisden’s combined XI from the India-West Indies ODI series:
1. Rohit Sharma
258 runs @ 86.00, HS: 159
Before the series even began, Rohit had already enjoyed a tremendous run-filled year, tonking over a 1000 ODI runs, including five centuries and 648 runs at the World Cup. The T20I series yielded one half-century in three games, but he came to his own as soon as the 50-over format came through.
A boundary-heavy 159, filled with 17 fours and five sixes, headlined India’s massive total of 387 at Visakhapatnam, and a breezy 63, in the decider, help lay the platform for a successful 316-run chase. He finished with some hefty records to his name and booked himself a place at the top of the order in our team.
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In three innings, Rahul and Rohit shared a century and a double-century stand[/caption]
2. KL Rahul
185 runs @ 61.66, HS: 102
Where does Shikhar Dhawan go now? India’s first choice opener for years, Dhawan will have a difficult time clawing back in, after KL Rahul’s consistent run-making in the ODI series, a feature lacking from his ODI career thus far.
After falling for 6 in the first ODI at Chennai, Rahul was one half of a massive double century stand with Rohit Sharma, blasting a century in Visakhapatnam, his third in 24 ODI innings. He came close to another one in the final game, compiling an 89-ball 77, one of three half-centuries by Indias top three.
3. Shai Hope (wk)
222 runs @ 111.00, HS: 102*
Ever since he was reinstated to the opener’s role, Shai Hope has been in prolific touch, amassing 222 runs in the series, the second-best from either side. Some question his slow run-scoring – his century at Chennai came at a strike-rate of 67.55 – but he also became the fastest West Indian to 3000 ODI runs in the decider, and the second fastest from any team.
His 76 and 42 in the first and last games were steady too, and though he couldn’t kick on to another three-digit score, he showed that consistency which makes him key for West Indies.
4. Shimron Hetmyer
180 runs @ 60.00, HS: 139
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Hetmyer’s 139 in the second game was West Indies’ highest score in the series against India[/caption]
The free-flowing spirit that Shimron Hetmyer is known for came to the fore all through the India tour. After a fearless 56 in the T20I series, he translated the same form into the one-dayers, slamming a 106-ball 139 in the second ODI, a blistering knock which included 11 fours and seven sixes.
It helped shrug off an indifferent year with the bat, as Kieron Pollard pointed out after the second game, and gave West Indies a valuable option at No.3. To top off a stellar week, he won a solid contract at the IPL auction as well.
5. Shreyas Iyer
130 runs @ 43.33, HS: 70
There have been several potential suitors, but Iyer could well solve India’s No.4 woes. Quite distinctly, there’s more control to Iyer’s play, the middle-order batsman able to rein in his expressive tendencies when necessary.
His two fifties in the series had contrasting tones: the 70 at Chennai was a responsible, rebuilding act after the cheap departure of the top three, while the 53 in the Vizag one-dayer was a blast at the end, three fours and four sixes included.
6. Nicholas Pooran
193 runs @ 96.50, HS: 89
Coming into the India tour fresh off a ball-tampering suspension, Pooran let his bat serve a suitable response, adding yet more firepower to any already incendiary West Indies’ middle order. He showed he could accumulate too and Pooran gave a great account of his versatility in the final ODI: 22 off 29 at one point, his expertly placed boundaries after the 40th over saw him end on a 64-ball 89.
His 75 in the second ODI turned out to be in a lost cause, but still helped West Indies put up a fight in the middle overs, carting six fours and as many sixes in a 47-ball blitz.
7. Ravindra Jadeja
60 runs @ 60.00; 3 wickets @ 62.00
Numbers will never define what Jadeja brings to any XI. A tri-skilled cricketer with a penchant for slipping in a knockout punch from nowhere, Jadeja caught West Indies off-guard with his cameo in the decider, seeing India home even as Kohli fell before the finishing line.
Apart from his composed 39 in the final game, Jadeja ensured considerable calm in the middle overs with the ball, and despite three 275+ scores by West Indies ended with an economy of 6.20.
8. Keemo Paul
6 wickets @ 26.00, BBI: 3-59
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Keemo Paul’s tally of six wickets was the most by any bowler in the India-West Indies ODI series[/caption]
Paul’s skiddy pace accounted for six wickets in three games, the most for a bowler in the series. More than anything, it was his ability to prise out wickets at key junctures that served West Indies well, including the wicket of Kohli in the decider, which almost tilted the game their way.
A crafty customer to be employed in the middle overs, Paul’s change of pace with the ball stood out. With the bat, Paul can be a handy striker at the end, as evidenced by his 46 in Chennai, albeit in a lost cause – the only innings he got to bat in.
9. Mohammed Shami
5 wickets @ 32.40, BBI: 3-39
2019 has been a breakthrough year for Shami in white-ball cricket. Brought into the team after playing just five ODIs since 2016, Shami exhibited all of his red-ball masterclass in coloured kits, jagging the ball around and unleashing the odd undetectable bouncer and yorker.
Across formats, Shami’s forte lies in snapping a growing partnership in the middle overs; with Jasprit Bumrah unavailable, his expertise extended to making impact with the new ball too. He captured five wickets in total, including three in the second game which ensured he ended 2019 as the year’s leading wicket-taker in ODIs.
10. Kuldeep Yadav
3 wickets @ 54.66, BBI: 3-52
It might have been just three balls that really stood out for Kuldeep Yadav, but he showed great control through the series, displaying that famed loop, drift and turn after a hot & cold 2019. Kuldeep’s hat-trick in the second game, a record-breaking feat in multiple ways, yanked out any possibility of a chase.
Apart from the three-wicket haul, Yadav did not bag any other wickets in the series, but kept the run-flow under check with an economy of 5.46, the second-best among all bowlers used in the series.
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11. Sheldon Cottrell
5 wickets @ 40.60, BBI: 2-46
It’s been a defining year for Sheldon Cottrell, who keeps growing from strength to strength with a white ball in hand. On placid Indian pitches, Cottrell showed he wasn’t just about bustling pace, varying the seam position and angling the ball away from the right handers, causing patches of early trouble.
He might have been a tad expensive (he went for 83 runs in nine overs in the second ODI, with an overall series economy of 7), but Cottrell was still West Indies’ go-to man, be it with the hard, new ball or at the death.
