It is not often West Indies go into a contest against England in an ICC tournament as favourites. Certainly not in recent years given how their fortunes have dwindled. The co-hosts of this tournament didn’t even get into the Super 12 stages of the previous edition in Australia, a tournament that England won. West Indies also failed to qualify for the last ODI World Cup, a tournament England entered as the defending champions.
However, Rovman Powell’s team have been in amazing form in this year’s T20 World Cup at home, finding great support at every venue they have been in. Their bowlers have been getting the job done in most of the games but when there was an opportunity for their batters to make their presence felt, they grabbed it with both hands as witnessed against Afghanistan in St.Lucia.
That’s certainly not been the case for England. The defending champions were expected to join New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka as the high-profile teams failing to make it to Super 8. After the washout against Scotland and the loss to Australia, England had to bank on Australia defeating Scotland to get through. But now that their qualification is sealed, England will have to regroup and start afresh again. A win against the team that’s unbeaten in the tournament can certainly boost their confidence.
Just six months ago, England and West Indies squared off in a five-match T20I series on these shores, albeit not at this particular venue. So there will be familiarity in terms of the personnel. That series turned out to be a humdinger with the hosts winning it 3-2. More of the same could be in order when the two two-time champions clash.
When:England vs West Indies, Super 8, 12:30 AM GMT (June 20), 8:30 PM local time, 6:00 AM IST
Where:Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia
What to expect:Given the batting might of these two teams and the conditions at this venue, we could be in for a high-scoring encounter, something that’s been very rare in this tournament so far.
Team Watch
England
Will Jacks was left out of the England XI against Namibia but on a batting friendly surface, a recall is on the cards. Mark Wood could return to the XI as well.
Tactics & Matchups:The likes of Reece Topley, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid have a favourable matchup against Brandon King. England should also look to use Rashid against Rovman Powell, who has an excellent record against England.
Probable XI:Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (c & wk), Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Reece Topley
West Indies
West Indies will have a decision to make with Obed McCoy. He made an impact after coming in for Romario Shepherd against Afghanistan. Will he retain his spot remains to be seen. Shai Hope is expected to make way for Roston Chase again.
Tactics & Matchups:While the two left-arm spinners for WI have been very good, Jos Buttler has done well against them both in the past. However, quite interestingly, the England skipper has struggled to put Russell away and that is one early matchup the hosts can focus on.
Probable XI:Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran(wk), Roston Chase, Rovman Powell(c), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Obed McCoy/Romario Shepherd, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie
Did you know?
– Andre Russell’s strike rate in T20 cricket this year is 204.11
– Phil Salt averages 45 at a strike rate over 185 in T20Is in West Indies
What they said
“Injuries are not by design or anything like that, they kind of happen. I’m quite comfortable that in the past it was nothing down to me, I sort of crossed every box, crossed every T, dotted every I and all that. I left no stone unturned and things just happened, it’s part of the game. I’ve just kept going with that and luckily, I’m here still in one piece and it’s the Super 8’s. I think it’s a really exciting week hopefully like I just said there’s going to be a time later in life that you look back at this week of being a really poignant and successful week that helped us achieve winning a World Cup out here.” – Reece Topley on his bad luck with injuries during global tournaments
“It’s always good it’s always encouraging when you give guys an opportunity and they take the opportunity and it makes for good competition within the squad and it’s for us as a selection panel myself the coach and the chairman are selected to actually sit down and try to find the best combination. It’s good that guys are putting themselves up and make it a little bit difficult to pick the team.” – Rovman Powell on Obed McCoy grabbing his chance against Afghanistan
