West Indies' long route to 2027 ODI World Cup starts in India

For India who are without Hardik, Bumrah and Iyer, it is about getting back to winning ways having lost two of the three ODIs series they have played this year

Big picture - The final lap for 2027 ODI World Cup starts

It is all about the 2027 ODI World Cup now. Every series that any team plays will be about putting things in place so that they have all bases covered by the time the first ball is bowled next October. West Indies have an extra box to tick given they have to run the gauntlet at the Qualfiier for the third successive time to make the ICC event.

India have played three ODI series this year and lost two of them. For various reasons - injuries, focus on the T20 World Cup which they won - they have struggled to put their first-choice team on the park and are once again without Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah, the allrounder who balances the XI and a once in a generation fast bowler. For all the hoops they must jump through, it is unfathomable that India will line up without either of them in Southern Africa if they are even halfway ready to play.

Neither is with the ODI team at the moment which leaves the bowling side of things a little light. Back-up allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy - only recently at full fitness himself - might have to get used to bowling his full 10 overs. An opposition team might see that as opportunity.RelatedKotak: We have not been 'unfair' to Jaiswal, he needs to 'wait for his opportunity'

Sammy: India series a chance to assess progress

Gill takes a hit to the elbow in the nets

Morkel: Reddy can 'compete for allrounder's spot'

Kohli and Rohit return to their comfort zone

West Indies have not won a bilateral 50-over series against India since 2006, and in India since 2002. Barring a left-arm quick, they have depth in their attack with Matthew Forde and Jayden Seales offering swing and seam, Alzarri Joseph for middle-overs threat and Vitel Lawes for X-factor. Shai Hope shepherds a batting line-up that has promise. These three ODIs - in addition to being valuable prep for bigger prizes in the future - have their own stakes.

Form guide

India: LLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)

West Indies: WLLLWVirat Kohli averages 66.50 against West Indies and is 59 short of 15,000 ODI runs•Getty Images

In the spotlight - Virat Kohli and Alzarri Joseph

Virat Kohli is 59 runs short of 15000 in ODIs and given he averages 66.50 against West Indies, there is a decent chance of history being made in Thiruvananthapuram. The one-day game is his best format primarily because he is able to keep up a good rate of scoring without having to take risks. Still, there has been a noticeable trend lately of Kohli looking to up his tempo, relying on the same shots he always does - drives and flicks and pulls - just playing them in the air. In six matches in 2026, he has a strike rate of 106.66 The only other year where he finished with a strike rate above 100 was 2018.

Alzarri Joseph and Daren Sammy had a falling out in public earlier this year over the fast bowler not playing the two Tests against Pakistan. At the start of this ODI series, the coach name-checked Joseph, highlighting that he is back in the team as a CPL champion. Either the ice has thawed or Joseph has been true to his words: "I'm a professional, so I'm going to go to work. I am representing the West Indies. I'm not representing Daren Sammy, so for me, I'm neither here nor there in terms of a relationship."

Team news: Gill fit to play

India captain Shubman Gill is fit to play after taking a blow to the elbow in the nets. Several first-choice players are with the T20I side at the Asian Games, including Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel which opens up a balance issue here. If India believe they can get 10 overs out of Reddy, they might go batting heavy with their XI, giving Naman Dhir a debut in the middle order. If they prefer bowling cover, they might stick with Gurnoor Brar or call up Auqib Nabi for his debut

India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shubman Gill (capt), 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Ruturaj Gaikwad, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 8 Naman Dhir/Gurnoor Brar/Auqib Nabi, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Prasidh Krishna, 11 Mohammed SirajAlzarri Joseph is back with West Indies fresh of a CPL title win•CPL T20

John Campbell will take his spot at the top of the order back after returning from surgery. Justin Greaves stepped in for him in two of the five ODIs against New Zealand in July and may partner him on Sunday. It remains to be seen if Shamar Joseph, who has played nine 50-over internationals since his debut in 2024 and finished his quota of 10 overs once, can push for a place in the XI

West Indies (probable) 1 John Campbell, 2 Justin Greaves, 3 Keacy Carty, 4 Shai Hope (capt & wk), 5 Sherfane Rutherford, 6 Roston Chase, 7 Matthew Forde, 8 Gudakesh Motie, 9 Jayden Seales/Shamar Joseph, 10 Alzarri Joseph, 11 Vitel Lawes

Pitch and conditions: Eyes on the quicks

Greenfield international stadium has hosted two previous ODIs. As small a sample size as that is, it is still the ground with the third best bowling average (25.35) for seamers in India. West Indies were undone by spin when they played here in 2018, bowled out for 104 with Ravindra Jadeja picking up four wickets. There is minimal threat of rain in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.

Stats and trivia: Hope leads the way at No. 4

Since the end of the last World Cup, West Indies average 28.09 against spin. Of the traditional ODI teams only Zimbabwe (24.12) fare worse. How they tackle Jadeja, who rarely gives anything away, and Kuldeep Yadav, who is a wicket-taking threat, could go a long way to deciding the result.

India have been one of the quickest scoring teams since the end of the last World Cup, their runs-per-over of 6.08 second only to England's 6.17. The have kept that rate while averaging 39.25 runs-per-wicket

India's top three average 53.34 since the end of the last World Cup. West Indies' corresponding figure is 29.35. They do, however, have the best performing middle-order batter in this time - Hope has scored 1350 runs at an average of 50 and strike rate of 92.91.