Two-time champs WI will need to shrug off poor show in warm-ups v Pakistan and Afghanistan to begin World T20 campaign against England with a bang
West Indies players during their warm-up match against Pakistan at Dubai on Monday. Pic/Getty Images
Two-time champions, but currently out of sorts, the West Indies will hope to raise their game by a few notches when they open their campaign against favourites England in a Super 12 match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup here on Saturday.
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A team packed with some of the most destructive T20 players, the West Indies cut a sorry figure in the two warm-up games against Pakistan and Afghanistan and would need to quickly shrug off the disappointment ahead of the tournament proper.
It was poor batting which cost them both the practice matches. While against Pakistan, the Caribbean team failed to put up a fighting total, scoring a modest 130-7, Kieron Pollard’s men managed 133-5 in their chase of 189 against Afghanistan.
Roston Chase’s 54 off 58 balls against Afghanistan was the only highlight of their batting as none of the other batters could capitalise on their starts in both the matches.
Pollard showed some spark when he hit a 10-ball 23 with five boundaries against Pakistan and his finishing skills will play a big role for the team in the tournament.
The West Indies will need the likes of Evin Lewis, Lendl Simmons, Shimron Hetmyer and Nicholas Pooran to fire to make a good start and win at least three group matches to qualify for the semi-finals.
One of the major concerns for West Indies is the form of Chris Gayle, who scored just 165 runs in nine innings in the Caribbean Premier League and featured in just two games for Punjab Kings in the UAE leg of the IPL.
England, on the other hand, are the reigning World champions in ODI cricket and will be itching to put the ghosts of the 2016 edition to rest when Carlos Brathwaite had smashed four successive sixes in the final to end their dreams.
Up against the same opponents, Eoin Morgan’s men will look to set the record straight when his army of men takes the field today.
England seem a balanced side despite missing some key players in Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Sam Curran.
While England lost to India in the first warm-up, they quickly recovered to beat New Zealand in the second match.
11
No. of T20I matches WI have won against England. They’ve lost seven
Also Read: T20 World Cup: Team India - One favourite, many dangers
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