India wins toss, opts to bowl in 1st T20 vs West Indies
KOLKATA, India (AP) — India won the toss and opted to bowl in the first T20 of the three-match series against West Indies on Sunday.
The hosts made two high-profile changes to their line-up with MS Dhoni and captain Virat Kohli making way for Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant.
Also Umesh Yadav is in for Bhuvneshwar Kumar who is out due to illness, while a changed middle-order from the ODI series includes Lokesh Rahul at No. 3 and Manish Pandey at No. 5.
Meanwhile, left-arm spin all-rounder Krunal Pandya makes his long anticipated international debut. Left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed, who has been a regular in the ODI squad since September, also makes his T20 debut.
West Indies also feature a change in leadership with Carlos Brathwaite taking over from Jason Holder. He'll lead a side that includes three debutants.
Pacer Oshane Thomas, left-arm spinner Fabian Allen and all-rounder Khary Pierre all take their internationals bows.
India won the test series against West Indies 2-0 and the five-match ODI series by a 3-1 margin.
Teams:
India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, K Khaleel Ahmed, Umesh Yadav
West Indies: Rovman Powell, Darren Bravo, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, Denesh Ramdin, Kieron Pollard, Carlos Brathwaite (captain), Keemo Paul, Fabian Allen, Khary Pierre, Oshane Thomas
