Tough task ahead for India A

Bangalore: If Kieran Powell`s West Indies ‘A` believe that they are in with a chance to win the three-match ODI series against India ‘A` as the two teams go into Thursday`s concluding game here tied 1-1, then the optimism is not misplaced.

The visitors showed plenty of pluck to bounce back after losing the opening game by 77 runs to beat Yuvraj Singh`s Indians by 55 runs in the next outing. The West Indians outplayed their rivals in all departments of the game to draw level in the series. The West Indians discovered a new hero in Jonathan Carter whose knock of 133 and two-wicket haul were the cornerstones of their success. In fact, Carter was brought in for the second game along with Leon Johnson and the century stand between the two helped the Windies to post what proved to be a winning total. Obviously, Powell and his mates would be hoping for an encore not just from Carter but also new ball bowler Miguel Cummins who sent down two hostile spells that unsettled the Indian batsmen while claiming four wickets. Yuvraj, centurion in Sunday`s game and top-scorer Tuesday with 40, was obviously disappointed by his team`s sloppy show that was more evident in their fielding that was rather slack and batting which was marked by questionable shot selection. In the event, the team looked rather ordinary. Thus, going into Thursday`s decider, the Windies would be high on confidence and quite rightly, optimistic of their chances while the Indians might have to do much of the running if they hope to clinch the series. IANS