West Indies, after levelling the three-match Test series at Port of Spain, will be aiming for a morale-boosting series win over New Zealand at Barbados in the third Test match, starting Thursday.
The hosts battled through five days in the second Test, after losing the first match in Jamaica. The Denesh Ramdin-led side would be looking to continue its form in the Kensington Oval, which is expected to help the seamers.
"It was important that we won in Trinidad, but what was also important was that we put in an impressive display," Ramdin said. "We dominated, we got good runs on the board and then our bowlers got 20 wickets, which was also very good. It was a hard fought Test match and we will bring that with us."
The Black Caps, on the other hand, have plenty of problems to deal with after their loss in the second Test. They failed to produce a solid opening stand in both matches, only Tom Latham is in good touch, as he has struck three fifties in last four innings.
Kiwi skipper Brendon McCullum has included medium-pacer Neil Wagner in place of leg-spinner Ish Sodhi in the team for the series decider on a seamer-friendly Barbados pitch. McCullum is expecting good pace and carry of the deck and hoping for his bowlers to exploit the conditions.
"It looks like it's pretty good batting surface with some bounce and it should have some decent carry even though there's not a lot of grass," McCullum said. "Hopefully it holds throughout the game and should be able to aid the fast bowlers."
"Either way there looks a little bit in it for the bowlers but also it looks like the kind of surface that if you get in on, because it's got good pace bounce and the outfield is fast, you can score some runs as well," he added.
Windies opener Chris Gayle, who made a match-winning 80 in the last match, said the openers will have to provide a solid start on a lively pitch. The Jamaican said he is looking forward to bat in Kensington Oval as it will be a good wicket to bat on.
"We got to be positive. The start is going to be important for us as opening batsmen. Once we get the start and use home advantage to the best we will see what happens," said Gayle. "Kensington is a good wicket to bat on. It's a fantastic ground. I love playing here. And, you get quality for your shots as well so it's something I am looking forward to."
Expected Lineups: West Indies: Chris Gayle, Kraigg Brathwaite, Kirk Edwards, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Jermaine Blackwood, Denesh Ramdin (c & wk), Sulieman Benn, Jerome Taylor, Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel
New Zealand: Tom Latham, Hamish Rutherford, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum (c), Jimmy Neesham, BJ Watling (wk), Neil Wagner, Tim Southee, Mark Craig and Trent Boult
Where to Watch Live
The 3rd Test Day 1 is scheduled for a 10:00 am local (7:30 pm IST, 2:00 pm GMT) start with live coverage on Ten Cricket and Ten HD in India. Catch ball-by-ball update of the match online in India HERE. Catch the action live on TV on Sky Sports 2 in New Zealand, while viewers can also live stream the action HERE. Viewers in the US can watch the game on Willow TV while the action can also be live streamed HERE or HERE. Watch the match in Caribbean on Sports Max, while South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa viewers can view the match on SuperSport and live online HERE.
