West Indies tour of India 2026 | 2nd T20I | Preview and Predictions
Captain Shreyas Iyer’s maiden T20I century powered India to a dominating win in the series’ opening game against the West Indies.
Now, the hosts will look to continue their winning run in T20Is as they head to Ranchi for the second game. The visitors, meanwhile, had a poor day in the field last time out and will be looking to bounce back.
For the second T20I between India and the West Indies, here we present our preview and predictions.
IND v WI 2026 | 2nd T20I | 19:00 IST, October 9, 2026
Making a couple of changes from their Asian Games campaign, India once again started Sanju Samson over Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, but Samson continued to disappoint and waste his chances. Abhishek Sharma’s quick start was cut short, and chasing 172 the hosts were in a spot of bother at 35/2 before captain Iyer and Ishan Kishan controlled the chase with a sublime partnership.
Iyer started slow and cautiously, and even Kishan was conservative at the start, but soon Iyer flipped the switch and smashed his way to his maiden T20I century, helping India chase down the target with more than five overs left. Iyer finished with 102*, while Kishan continued his stellar run of form, getting another handy contribution of 37.
With the likes of Shivam Dube and Naman Dhir in the squad, the hosts bat deep, with Tilak Varma, Axar Patel, Shivam Dube and Naman Dhir making up a long and explosive lower-middle order.
With the ball, Arshdeep Singh led the attack in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, who has been rested for the series. Alongside Singh, Mayank Yadav shared the new ball, and while Yadav was a tad expensive, Yadav impressed with good pace even in his second spell at the end of the innings.
It was the spinners who put a check on the WI batters, as Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Naman Dhir (on his debut) made sure the West Indies weren’t able to get close to 200. Dhir was brave with the ball despite going for some runs, while Patel and Yadav showed their experience in the middle.
On the other hand, the West Indies were put into bat first. Captain Shai Hope continued his strong form from the ODI series, putting up another half-century. The top and middle orders failed to capitalise, though, on the platform set by Hope, and barring Sherfane Rutherford’s late heroics, only two other WI batters hit double digits. Hope will be expecting his batters to step up and apply themselves going forward, especially in conditions that suit batting.
The WI bowlers were unable to contain the Indian batters, with only Akeal Hosein looking capable to trouble the Indian batters. With the likes of Shamar Joseph, Roston Chase and Matt Forde in their arsenal, the Caribbean outfit will be hoping for a better showing with the ball in Ranchi.
Here’s another ground that provides something to batters. The Ranchi strip will bring about a lot of runs, though also some turn and grip for the spin bowlers.
India start as the clear favourites given the West Indies’ all-round struggles. We back the Men in Blue to win here and take a 2–0 lead in the five-game series.
Fantasy XI: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma (c), Shai Hope (wk), Ishan Kishan (vc), Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Axar Patel, Akeal Hosein, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Shamar Joseph
Venue: JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi
Winners Prediction: India
