India vs. West Indies, 1st ODI: Date, Live Stream, TV Info, Preview

India and West Indies begin their five-match ODI series in Kochi on Wednesday as both sides begin their World Cup preparations in earnest. 

Venue: Nehru Stadium, Kochi

Commences: Wednesday, Oct. 8

Start time: 10 a.m. BST (2:30 p.m. local)

Live on: Star Sports (India), SuperSport (South Africa), SkySports (UK), Willow TV (USA and Canada), Ten Sports (Caribbean)

Weather:  AccuWeather.com has bad news with thunderstorms forecast for most of the afternoon. If the forecast holds, it could be a long and frustrating day for fans and players alike. 

Overview

This will be India's last home series before the 2015 ICC World Cup, and it's the second time in 12 months that India have played host to the men from the Caribbean. The last time West Indies played a one-day series in India, back in November 2013, they were beaten, 2-1.

As with all one-day series played in the lead-up to the World Cup, these contests hold quite a lot of significance. Both teams are building a team for the global event, and both teams want to gather as much momentum as possible before the tournament commences.

India are fresh off an ODI series win in England but have made a few changes to their side. Ravi Ashwin is being rested, with Kuldeep Yadav coming in to replace him. Yadav has never played for India before, and in fact, he has never even played a List A game.

Amit Mishra is the other spinner in the team and seems to be the more likely option. India are also without Rohit Sharma, who is still out injured and Murali Vijay has been ushered in as a replacement.

For the West Indies, Chris Gayle is out of action due to injury, and Lendl Simmons is the most likely replacement.  Simmons has blown hot and cold with the bat recently, and his most impressive performance came when he hit an unbeaten 76 for Mumbai Indians during the Champions League qualifiers in September.

He played for the West Indies during their recent ODI series against Bangladesh and shifted between batting in the middle order and opening. With Gayle out of action, he could very well shift up the order. Simmons replaced Kirk Edwards at the top of the order to open with Gayle in the final ODI against Bangladesh, but with Gayle now out injured, there is yet another gap to plug.

Another big absence is Sunil Narine, who has been banned from bowling. Sulieman Benn has been named as replacement and should arrive in time in order to take up the spinning duties.

On paper, India are very much the stronger team. The West Indies have been lackluster over the last few months, and while they do have some talented players, they have not always performed to their full potential.

Rain might also be a factor and could wash out the entire day’s play and it could end up being a stop-start affair. 

Key players

India

Suresh Raina's form in the Champions League Twenty20 means he'll be high on confidence and match ready to score some big runs. Having finished off the tournament with a century which helped lead Chennai Super Kings to the title, Raina's role will be key.

West Indies

Darren Bravo has been in good touch when playing for West Indies recently. He had a stellar series against Bangladesh in the ODIs and the Tests. He scored just nine in the warm-up match against India A, but as a great player of spin, Bravo will be key in anchoring the innings.

Squads

India: MS Dhoni (capt. and wicketkeeper), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Amit Mishra, Mohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Murali Vijay.

West Indies: Dwayne Bravo (capt.), Leon Johnson, Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Smith, Jermaine Blackwood, Marlon Samuels, Darren Bravo, Denesh Ramdin (wicketkeeper), Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, Darren Sammy, Jason Holder, Suleiman Benn, Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach, Jerome Taylor.

All stats via ESPNcricinfo, unless otherwise stated.