WT20 semi-final: Spin could decide the fate of Sri Lanka vs West Indies match

West Indies spinners Samuel Badree (right) and Sunil Narine warm up during a training session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka yesterday. Pics/AFP

Dhaka: Spinners, once considered irrelevant in hit-and-run cricket, will play a pivotal role when the World Twenty20 reaches the business end with the first of two semi-finals here today.


West Indies spinners Samuel Badree (right) and Sunil Narine warm up during a training session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka yesterday. Pics/AFP

Among the top eight wicket-takers in the elite Super-10 round, six are spinners with South Africa's leggie Imran Tahir leading the pack with 11 wickets in four games.

Defending champions the West Indies, who clash with Sri Lanka today in a repeat of the 2012 final, boast two prolific slow bowlers in Samuel Badree and Sunil Narine.

The duo shared six wickets as the Caribbean stars demolished Pakistan by 84 runs in the last league match on Tuesday to qualify for the semi-finals.

Sri Lanka have an ace up their sleeve in veteran left-armer Rangana Herath, whose sensational figures of 3.3-2-3-5 destroyed New Zealand in Chittagong on Monday.


Sri Lanka's spinner Rangana Herath in Dhaka yesterday

West Indies skipper Darren Sammy said his spinners would pose a challenge for the rival team. "Just as it (spin) will be a challenge for us, it will be a challenge for them as well.

You are looking at the number one and two in West Indies' bowling line up," said Sammy of his spinners Badree and Narine - ranked one and two in international T20 rankings.

Badree took 3-10 runs and Narine grabbed 3-16 against Pakistan.

'WI can make history'
Sammy was confident that his side can achieve what no other team has done in the World T20 - defend the title. "It's something which no team has done before and we are confident that we can do that,"
he said.