The New Ground, the Old Questions — India and West Indies Arrive at Mullanpur With Everything Still to Play For

The 1st ODI in Thiruvananthapuram was supposed to be a contest. For nineteen overs, it was. Justin Greaves and John Campbell put on 135 for the first wicket, Greaves going on to a maiden ODI hundred — 101 off 108, the innings of a man who had waited half a decade for this stage. West Indies posted 295/7. Then Virat Kohli walked out at number three and made 139 not out off 88 balls, nine sixes, passing 15,000 ODI runs along the way. Shubman Gill made 110 at the other end. India won by eight wickets with fifty balls to spare.

By the time the teams reach New Chandigarh, the picture of the 2nd ODI at Guwahati will be complete. If India won, this becomes a dead rubber in the nicest sense — the kind of match where India might experiment with their lineup, rest a senior player, or give Auqib Nabi or Gurnoor Brar a longer look ahead of the World Cup. If West Indies fought back, this becomes a decider, and deciders in India are a different animal entirely.

The Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh — or Mullanpur, as the locals still call it — is one of Indian cricket's newer stages. Built to serve the Punjab region's hunger for international cricket, the ground has hosted a handful of white-ball internationals since its inauguration, but every match there adds another page to a story that is still being written.

What we know about the surface: it tends to offer good bounce and true carry, which suits both pace and batting. The outfield is quick, the boundaries are not unreasonably large, and the day-night factor could bring dew into play in the second innings — a pattern that has historically favoured the chasing side in ODIs across northern India's October conditions. The weather should be pleasant: the late monsoon humidity of Thiruvananthapuram and Guwahati gives way to the drier, cooler air of Punjab in early October.

For Rohit Sharma, this is nearly a homecoming — the nearest international venue to where he has spent countless hours training during the Indian off-season. For Gill, who grew up in Fazilka, barely three hours away, it is home in every sense that matters. The crowd will be loud, it will be partisan, and it will expect nothing less than a spectacle.

The most interesting decision India face is how much they are willing to tinker. If the series is already won at 2-0, there is a strong case for resting one of Kohli or Rohit — the 2027 World Cup is ten months away, and both are 37 or older. Yashasvi Jaiswal would be the obvious replacement at the top, and Ruturaj Gaikwad could slide up the order. Auqib Nabi, who has been carrying drinks through the first two matches, might finally get the left-arm seam option India have been scouting.

If the series is 1-1, India's best XI walks out unchanged. Rohit and Gill at the top, Kohli at three, Gaikwad at four, KL Rahul keeping at five, Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy as the all-round options, Kuldeep the lead spinner, and Prasidh Krishna sharing the new ball with either Siraj or Gurnoor Brar. The third seamer slot has been the only moving piece all series — and it might finally be settled by the time they reach Mullanpur.

The deeper story remains Kuldeep. His 4/40 in Thiruvananthapuram was not just the spell of the match — it was a reminder that India's best ODI XI has room for only one wrist-spinner, and he is it. If the pitch at Mullanpur offers even a trace of grip, West Indies' middle-order troubles against him multiply further.

Whatever happens in Guwahati, West Indies know what they need to fix. It is the same thing they have needed to fix since the 19th over at Greenfield: the middle overs.

Justin Greaves and John Campbell proved in the 1st ODI that the top order can take on India's attack — 135 without loss is not a fluke, it is a statement. The problem is what followed. Once Kuldeep came on, the innings fell apart: Shai Hope made 12, Keacy Carty made 13 off 31 balls, and the 63 runs for five wickets through the middle overs are the difference between 295 and 330.

The bowling presents a more structural challenge. Jayden Seales has been economical without being threatening — his pace is genuine, his new-ball spells competitive, but he has not yet found the wicket-taking ball that changes a powerplay. Alzarri Joseph has pace and bounce but went for 81 in nine overs in Thiruvananthapuram. Gudakesh Motie's left-arm spin should be the control option, but against Kohli in this form, control means conceding sixes rather than fours.

If West Indies are to salvage something from the ODI leg, they may need to be braver with selection. Roston Chase's off-spin could be used as a genuine attacking option rather than a fill-in. A more aggressive fielding setup in the middle overs — catching positions rather than boundary riders against spin — might be the tactical gamble that turns a start into a victory. The talent is there. What has been missing is the ruthlessness to turn a good 19 overs into a good 50.