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1. Key man – India – Virat Kohli
Not for the first time and nor for the last too, Virat Kohli will be in focus on this India vs West Indies preview day. He has already made two hundreds in as many matches in this series and went past the 10000-run mark in the second ODI - the fastest in terms of innings (205). He is batting like a dream across the formats these days and West Indies need to plan his early dismissal. However hard that task may appear at the moment, it's the only way ahead for the visitors. If they can jettison Kohli early then they can think of applying more pressure on the rest of the Indian line-up.
2. Key man – West Indies – Shimron Hetmyer
The aggressive left-hander has made a hundred and 94 in two matches and played out the Indian spinners well. He combines brute power with elegance that is natural to left-handers and quite obviously he has reminded many of those West Indian batsmen of a bygone era. He will again have to play a crucial role at Pune to give the West Indies a sniff at victory.
. Key factor – Return of Bhuvneshwar Kumar / Jasprit Bumrah
Indian pace bowling lacked control in the first two ODIs. Both Mohammad Shami and Umesh Yadav leaked runs aplenty - their economy rate hovers over 7. Shami has been dropped for the remainder of the series while Umesh has just about managed to retain his place. But India now have Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah and the ‘B' company is one most successful new ball pair of the recent days. With accuracy and variety at their disposal, India will be looking forward to Bhuvi and Bumrah to contain the Windies more effectively.
4. Pitch and conditions
The 22-yard trampoline at Pune has often favoured the batsmen and an exception is not expected. The boundaries here are relatively small and the outfield quick, offering a big value to batsmen's shots. In short, the bowlers will have to maintain their discipline to return to the hut with respectable figures. The conditions will be hot and humid and there is a chance of dew factor coming into play later in the evening.
5. Telecast and timings
The match will be live on various channels of Star Network from 1.30 pm onwards and the live streaming will be on HotStar. And there will be Live Blog section in MyKhel as well for you to follow.
