LONDON — West Indies captain Dwayne Bravo is confident of containing India's batting firepower when the two sides meet in a key Champions Trophy match at the Oval Tuesday. The winner is almost certain to take one of the two semifinal berths from Group B after both teams won their opening games, albeit in contrasting fashion. India, the reigning World Cup champion, brushed aside injury-hit South Africa by 26 runs in Cardiff after an impressive batting display saw it post a commanding 331-7. The West Indies shot Pakistan out for 170 at the Oval Friday, but then showed its vulnerability while batting as it lost eight wickets while chasing the modest target. All-rounder Bravo, who replaced Darren Sammy as one-day captain ahead of the tournament, said the close result did not worry him as his side prepared to face the in-form Indians. “We came out on top and that's more important,” said Bravo. “It does not matter if you lose eight or nine wickets, we got the two points that we wanted.” Bravo, whose side beat Sri Lanka by 17 runs in a practice match in Edgbaston last week, said winning two games in a row was the right morale-booster ahead of tougher encounters. Bravo, who plays for Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, said the West Indies had the resources to take the world champion in its stride. “It's another tough game against a team whose strength lies is their batting,” he said. “But we have the right bowlers to control their batting. “Cricket is played on the day. India could turn up Tuesday and be knocked over, or score a big total again as they normally do. “I have the right attack if I want to go with someone with raw pace. I have the reserve bench that is strong enough to actually come up with the 11 that I think will do well against the Indians.” Bravo said the opening win against Pakistan added to the joy of captaining the West Indies. “It is a great personal achievement for me,” he said. “But it is not all about me as a captain. It's how we all come together and try to make the best decision for the team. “The West Indies normally do not start well in tournaments like this, so it was important that we get our first win out of the way and look forward to the rest of the games ahead.” India, which has won eight of its last 11 one-dayers against the West Indies over the past three years, will look to continue its fine batting form over the past week. It chased down Sri Lanka's massive 333-5 with an over to spare in a warm-up game in Birmingham, with Dinesh Karthik making an unbeaten 106 and Virat Kohli slamming 144. India then rode on opener Shikhar Dhawan's 114 off 94 balls to pile up another 300-plus total against a depleted South African attack missing injured strike bowler Dale Steyn. But the bowlers will have to deliver against a line-up that has match-winning batsmen like Chris Gayle, Marlon Samuels and Kieron Pollard. Ramdin penalized West Indies' wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin was Monday suspended for two one-day matches and fined 100 percent of his match fees for wrongly claiming a catch in the Champions Trophy. Match referee Chris Broad charged Ramdin with violating the spirit of the game following a hearing in London after the wicketkeeper had pleaded not guilty to the offense. The suspension means Ramdin will miss Tuesday's match against India at the Oval and the last group game against South Africa in Cardiff Friday. The incident took place at the Oval, London, last Friday when Ramdin appeared to catch Pakistan captain Misbahul Haq off Kemar Roach before the batsman had opened his account. — Agencies
