England will face co-hosts West Indies in the second Super Eight match of the Men’s T20 World Cup on Wednesday (Thursday morning IST) at the Daren Sammy Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet, St Lucia.
England arrived confident after clear wins over runners-up Oman and Namibia. Meanwhile, the West Indies are expected to gather strength thanks to their undefeated streak in the recently concluded group stage.
Bad weather and a one-sided contest meant England could only bowl 33.1 overs so far. The defending champions will be keen to get more playing time in St. Lucia, which has proven to be a high-scoring stadium. Tropical showers fell the day before the game, but the weather is likely to hold out for Wednesday’s game.
READ MORE: T20 World Cup 2024: England win to leapfrog Scotland into Super Eights stage
England are currently struggling with the fitness of all-rounder Liam Livingstone, who was sidelined during the game against Namibia due to a side injury. In that match, England fielded batsman Will Jacks in place of all-rounder Sam Curran. This allowed Jonny Bairstow and Harry Brook to bat at numbers 3 and 4 respectively, with both producing outstanding performances.
If Livingstone remains unfit, Curran is well placed to take his place. Alternatively, given West Indies’ two left-arm finger spin options in Gudakesh Motie and Akeal Hosein, England could field an additional left-hander in Ben Duckett instead of Jacks.
This would allow England to pursue a right-hander-left-hander partnership at once, unlike Namibia, where the top four teams were all right-handers. That said, England’s openers, especially Jos Buttler, are looking positive against Hossain. In all T20Is, Buttler has scored 65 off 43 at a strike rate of 150+ against Hosein.
Meanwhile, West Indies entered their 200th T20I with eight straight wins. Nicholas Pooran’s eight sixes during his 98 against Afghanistan helped the West Indies to 218-5, their highest score of the tournament so far.
England can bounce Nicholas Pooran or test him against offspin. | Photo credit: PTI
England can bounce Nicholas Pooran or test him against offspin. | Photo credit: PTI
Puran has two obvious weaknesses. Fast pace and short length of away spin. He tends to work hard early in the inning. England will be targeting that sharpness through Mark Wood and Jofra Archer and, if he survives, finger spinner Moeen Ali could be a favorable match-up for the Three Lions given Pooran’s poor record against the off-breaks. He averages just under 30 points for this form. Bowling below 120 in all T20Is.
The ground size, with one square border being noticeably shorter than the other, along with the intersecting winds, has a huge impact on the dynamics of the game here. Therefore, sending long hitters away from the short side will be an important strategy.
The upcoming match against the unbeaten West Indies in front of a small but raucous crowd will provide a clearer assessment of England’s title prospects this year.
