India eyeing another big win to regain No 1 Test ranking

By Chetan Narula Port of Spain (Trinidad), Aug 17 (PTI) On a high aftersealing the series with comprehensive victories, an upbeatIndia will be aiming to complete a 3-0 rout in order to regainits No 1 Test ranking when they meet a listless West Indies inthe final Test match of the series, here tomorrow. Having already taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in thefour-match series after their crushing 237-run win in thethird Test, Virat Kohli and his men will be aiming to go forthe kill in their bid to displace Australia from the poleposition in the ICC Test rankings list. However a draw at the Queen’s Park Oval would mean thatAustralia will maintain their top position while Pakistan byvirtue of their creditable 2-2 draw against England will bethe No 2 Test team. With skipper Kohli making it clear that he will like tohave Rohit Sharma at No 5 and promote himself to No 3, it isunlikely that the core batting line-up will have any change inthe final Test match. However with Shikhar Dhawan not having much of aperformance barring his 84 in the opening Test, it will beinteresting to see if Murali Vijay, who was dropped in thelast game despite being fit makes a comeback in the playingXI. The opener’s thumb injury has fully healed, as announcedby batting coach Sanjay Bangar previously. At this point of time, Cheteshwar Pujara getting alifeline seems unlikely. Even the five-pronged bowling attack could undergochange. In a long season, where India play another 13 Tests,the workload for the likes of Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shamineeds to be managed. One of them could be afforded a breather, with arebounding chance given to Umesh Yadav, or even newbie ShardulThakur could get a look-in, if Kohli is in experimental mode. Away from these permutations and combinations, India lookset in their plans. Their energy will be focussed on attainingconsistency, and as the skipper put it, in expressingthemselves. PTI CN KHSKHS