Pakistan had won three out of four matches in the recently concluded T20 series against West Indies. The Men in Green will be looking to deliver the goods in the upcoming ODI series. The first ODI will be held at Province Stadium in Guyana on Friday.
West Indies, however, will be keen to avenge the T20 series loss. West Indies players will hope to give fans a reason to cheer in the first ODI.
It is not going to be easy for West Indies to beat Pakistan with what looks like a watered-down squad. The big names like Kieron Pollard, Samuel Badree and Sunil Narine are missing in the action paving the way for players like Evin Lewis, Chadwick Walton, Shai Hope to fill in their shoes.
On the bowling front, a lot rides on Shannon Gabriel and Devendra Bishoo for West Indies.
Pakistan are a much better unit across the departments with experienced players to boot. Captain Sarfaraz Ahmed can count on Ahmed Shehzad and Babar Azam at the top order to give Pakistan a solid start. They have a strong middle-order with Ahmed himself and Shoaib Malik. Hasan Ali, Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Amir can make inroads into any world class batting line-up, and West Indies batsmen will struggle to keep them at bay.
West Indies need to come up with a special performance to beat Pakistan in the first ODI, and remain in the contention for a series win in the home soil.
Where to watch live
West Indies vs Pakistan 1st ODI is scheduled for 9.30 am local time (7 pm IST, 6.30 pm Pakistan, 1.30 pm GMT). Here is the live streaming and TV options.
India - TV: Ten 1 HD, Ten 3.
Pakistan: TV: PTV Sports. Live streaming: PTV Sports live
UK: TV: Sky Sports Mix. Live Streaming: Sky Go
