T20 World Cup 2024, WI vs ENG forty second Match, Tremendous Eights, Group 2 Match Preview

Match particulars

West Indies vs England
June 19, St Lucia, 8.30pm native time

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After the angst they endured within the group stage, England have floated all the way down to St Lucia on a wave of exhalation. No matter occurs of their T20 World Cup defence from hereon in, their avoidance of a humiliating first-round exit may but show to be as a lot of a fillip as 4 rousing wins from 4. Their marketing campaign can start in earnest now, which is simply as effectively, as a result of they’re about to bump right into a workforce which no such issues to weigh them down.

England and West Indies are every competing for an unprecedented third T20 World Cup title, and the occasions on the Daren Sammy Cricket Floor in Beausejour – a venue named in honour of the person who delivered the hosts these first two titles – might go a way in the direction of confirming the readiness, or in any other case, of those two very actual contenders for the crown.

West Indies are match, targeted and firing on all cylinders. They arrive into this contest on an eight-match unbeaten run, and if there have been just a few early-tournament nerves on present in an anxious pair of Group C victories over Papua New Guinea and New Zealand, then their unmitigated thrashings of Uganda and a highly-rated Afghanistan have assuaged them in uncompromising vogue.

Fairly aside from the facility of their current victories, the vary of West Indies’ match-winners has propelled them firmly into the title combine. From Andre Russell’s 71 from 29 balls towards Australia in Perth, to Brandon King’s 79 from 45 towards South Africa in Jamaica, by way of Roston Chase and Johnson Charles, and all through to Sherfane Rutherford’s innings-salvaging 68 not out towards New Zealand and Nicholas Pooran’s ballistic 98 from 53 balls towards Afghanistan, they’ve again and again showcased a batting line-up with full religion in one another’s attributes, and a capability to face up when referred to as upon.

Solely the captain, Rovman Powell, has been in need of current runs, despite the fact that a 24-ball fifty in a warm-up match towards Australia is enough proof that his eye continues to be firmly in. With Sammy ensconced as head coach, and instilling the identical spirit of collective duty that powered their twin titles in 2012 and 2016, England know there will be no room for lapses if their mini-resurgence is to be translated into very important Tremendous Eight factors.

There have been actually just a few of these on present of their timid show towards Australia in Barbados, most notably in a middle-order that discovered it inconceivable to chop free as soon as the powerplay fielding restrictions had been lifted. At occasions of their trudge to a deeply one-sided 36-run loss, it was like watching their formless performances on the 50-over World Cup in India, a marketing campaign that Jos Buttler had tried to faux by no means occurred in some notably terse media engagements firstly of this journey.

The disjointed nature of England’s build-up is a partial excuse – after two wash-outs on house soil towards Pakistan and three matches towards Scotland, Oman and Namibia that noticed them bat for a complete of 13.2 overs, time within the center has been a rarity, particularly with Buttler and Phil Salt in a stable vein of type on the high. However these big-match gamers ought to have visualised sufficient situations of their time to make gentle of such straitened circumstances. They have been spared a soggy exit by that break within the clouds in Antigua. Now’s the time to show that they’re worthy of the reprieve.

Kind information

West Indies: WWWWW (final 5 accomplished T20Is, most up-to-date first)
England: WWLWW

Within the highlight – Phil Salt and Gudakesh Motie

Go exhausting or go house. That has been Phil Salt‘s mantra all through his T20 profession, and proper now, his unrelenting method on the high of England’s order has by no means been extra beneficial. After flitting across the periphery for a number of seasons, Salt’s worldwide breakthrough got here towards this similar West Indies workforce again in December, when his back-to-back centuries in Grenada and Trinidad carried the assault again to the world’s most aggressive batting line-up, and reminded England of the fearlessness that that they had so clearly mislaid of their 50-over World Cup defence. Given the truncated nature of their 20-over marketing campaign so far, it is exhausting to guage precisely how the middle-order is monitoring, which implies that impetus on the high might be all of the extra essential as they search their first main scalp of the marketing campaign.

In a power-packed line-up, there’s one thing unassuming about Gudakesh Motie‘s left-arm choices, however as England found in December – and as seven wickets at 11.85 amply attest now – his relentless flight and guile has the flexibility to use a handbrake to all method of free-flowing groups, notably ones fairly as stacked with right-handers as England’s. In his first T20I encounter with Jos Buttler’s males, in Grenada six months in the past, he returned the exceptional figures of 1 for 9 in 4 overs, then capped that impression with 3 for twenty-four within the collection decider in Trinidad. Straightening the ball on the stumps from around the wicket won’t appear essentially the most advanced of modus operandi, but when there’s an iota of help in a used floor in St Lucia, he is more likely to exploit it.

Staff information

Not a variety of issues for West Indies after a dominant show towards Afghanistan, though they do have a handful of choice conundrums. Roston Chase and Shai Hope are competing for a similar middle-order berth, whereas Romario Shepherd missed the final match for paternity go away, however is due again with the squad in good time for the match. He might slot again in forward of Obed McCoy.

West Indies (doable): 1 Brandon King, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Nicholas Pooran (wk), 4 Shai Hope/Roston Chase, 5 Rovman Powell (capt), 6 Andre Russell, 7 Sherfane Rutherford, 8 Akeal Hossain, 9 Alzarri Joseph, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Obed McCoy/Romario Shepherd.

England combined it up a contact after the showers in Antigua had diminished their Namibia match to 11 overs, with Sam Curran and Chris Jordan each included to supply a wider vary of death-bowling choices. Each might hold their locations, with Jordan’s demise bowling and further batting giving him an edge over Mark Wooden. Will Jacks additionally appears more likely to come again into the XI, probably down the order at No. 6, with Liam Livingstone lacking coaching as a consequence of a illness bug – however having recovered from the aspect niggle he suffered towards Namibia.

England (doable): 1 Phil Salt, 2 Jos Buttler (capt & wk), 3 Jonny Bairstow, 4 Harry Brook, 5 Moeen Ali, 6 Will Jacks, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Jofra Archer, 9 Mark Wooden/Chris Jordan, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Reece Topley

Pitch and situations

This will likely be one other outing for the belter of a floor on which West Indies racked up 218 for five towards Afghanistan on Monday, so a high-scoring contest is in prospect. The scale are a contact lop-sided, 63 metres on one sq. boundary, in comparison with 72 metres on the opposite, however the prevailing wind tends to blow to the longer aspect, so the massive hitters can anticipate some bang for his or her buck.

Stats and trivia

England and West Indies duked it out in an entertaining T20I collection in December, with West Indies successful 3-2 because of a four-wicket win within the decider in Trinidad.

Moeen Ali and Obey McCoy every want one wicket to achieve 50 in T20Is, whereas Akeal Hossain wants two extra for a similar milestone.

West Indies themselves have performed in ten of the 21 T20Is on the venue, successful six of these, together with 5 of their final six.

Quotes

“It is good that we’re beginning right here and truly we play one recreation on it, earlier than the beginning of the Tremendous Eight. We’re somewhat bit accustomed to the bounce and accustomed the wicket. Hopefully that will swimsuit us somewhat bit greater than the Englishmen.”
West Indies captain Rovman Powell desires his workforce to make use of getting already performed on Wednesday’s strip

“I feel perhaps the West Indies can be hopefully attempting to get their very own again for our followers that have been so unimaginable… they’re going to try to rally them and create this cauldron of an environment tomorrow evening. It will be unimaginable.”
Reece Topley predicts robust St Lucian help after England’s followers outnumbered the locals in December’s T20I collection

Andrew Miller is UK editor of ESPNcricinfo. @miller_cricket

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