India opt to bowl against West Indies in 1st T20

India captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl against West Indies in the first of the three Twenty20 internationals in Kolkata on Sunday.

The hosts, who come into the shortest format after winning the Test series 2-0 and the one-day internationals 3-1, have fielded two debutants in fast bowler Khaleel Ahmed and allrounder Krunal Pandya.

"We have played a lot of cricket here (at Kolkata's Eden Gardens), batting second becomes easier," Sharma, standing in as skipper for the resting Virat Kohli, said at the toss.

"The dew might turn out to be a factor as well. It's going to play a massive role."

The tourists also handed T20 caps to paceman Oshane Thomas, allrounder Khary Pierre and Fabian Allen.

Skipper Carlos Brathwaite said West Indies, who are the current World T20 champions, are looking to be "expressive" on the field.

"We have a few debutants and some senior players as well. We just need to enjoy ourselves, express ourselves and take on the challenge as a family," said Brathwaite.

India: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wk), Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Khaleel Ahmed, Umesh Yadav

West Indies: Carlos Brathwaite (captain), Rovman Powell, Darren Bravo, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Kieron Pollard, Keemo Paul, Fabian Allen, Khary Pierre, Oshane Thomas

Umpires: Chettithody Shamshuddin (IND), CK Nandan