Gill to captain India in third and final ODI against West Indies at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium

Shubman Gill will captain India against the West Indies in the third and final ODI at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium on Saturday. India secured the series after Gill’s 110 in Thiruvananthapuram and an unbeaten 223 in Guwahati, the latter in a successful chase of a 406-run target.

Playing a home match as captain and being in strong form raises expectations around the 27-year-old, who also has the chance to mark the stadium’s inaugural one-dayer. While a 3-0 sweep is the immediate objective, the team’s management regards matches over the next year as preparation for the 2027 ODI World Cup and may use this fixture to evaluate squad depth. Indian coach Gautam Gambhir was pictured with Gill during a team training session ahead of the game.

With the series already settled, India may tinker with personnel to test bench strength. Mohammed Siraj has endured a difficult period described as “a tough last few months” with sub‑par performances in the Sri Lanka Tests and the Duleep Trophy final, and, now that Prasidh Krishna is out due to injury, the management might be tempted to give the Hyderabad pacer a chance to regain form. Selection could therefore include changes among the pace options.

Batting options are also under consideration: Yashasvi Jaiswal is waiting in the wings and could be introduced at the expense of a top-four batter if chosen. The middle and lower order have not had extensive match time in the series, prompting suggestions India could practise defending a total now that the result is decided. Such a move would allow the team to test its bowling in a different scenario.

West Indies have seen their batters contribute while their bowlers have fallen short in both matches thus far. The visiting side has struggled to take early wickets, and when the pacers fail to provide breakthroughs the burden on the spinners increases. Concerns have also been raised about pitches skewed in favour of batting; the West Indies will hope for a more balanced surface to give them a chance to salvage pride.

The third ODI, the series finale, starts at 2.00 p.m. Published - October 02, 2026 06:29 pm IST.