The State of Play
England will look to capitalise on their good fortune in making the Super Eight when they take on the West Indies tomorrow.
Jos Buttler’s men only qualified for the next phase of the T20 World Cup after old rivals Australia did them a favour in beating Scotland on Saturday. An early flight home would arguably have been harsh on England who were playing catch-up after their first game of the tournament – against the Scots – was washed out.
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A defeat to Australia followed before resounding back-to-back wins against Oman and Namibia.
It should be an entertaining clash in St Lucia against the Windies on one of the rare pitches in this tournament that appear to favour the batters.
England all-rounder Sam Curran said: “Looking at our batting line-up, we deal in a lot of sixes: it’ll be a run-fest on Wednesday, I’m sure.”
Curran will hope to keep his place after returning to the side for the Namibia game in place of Will Jacks.
His left-arm swing gives England’s attack another option and it may be he keeps his place, especially with fellow all-rounder Liam Livingstone battling to be fit due to a side injury.
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The make up of England’s bowling is another question for the team management to answer with Mark Wood, Reece Topley and Chris Jordan all battling for selection alongside Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid.
The Windies played on the same pitch in their 104-run thrashing of Afghanistan yesterday and thrived, making 218 for five in their 20 overs – the highest score of the tournament so far.
Nicholas Pooran led the way with 98 off 53 balls for a much-changed home side who had already qualified and go into this game on the back of eight straight wins.
Rovman Powell’s men certainly have momentum as well as the support of boisterous Caribbean crowds.
Powell said: “When we started the journey, we were eighth or ninth in the world. Now we are around third in the world, and when you do well, the fans start believing.
“Guyana was lovely, Trinidad was a packed house, and to see the support St Lucia has given, it is amazing.”
All-rounder Romario Shepherd missed the Afghanistan game with his wife giving birth to their second child but is set to return to the XI to face England.
Hands down one of the most memorable #T20WorldCup innings!💥
Our POTM – Nicholas Pooran🎖#WIREADY | #T20WorldCup | #WIvAFG pic.twitter.com/WMxP4suYp9
— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) June 18, 2024
Expected line-ups
West Indies: King, Charles, Pooran (wk), Chase, Powell (c), Rutherford, Hosein, Russell, Shepherd, Joseph, Motie
England: Salt, Buttler (c, wk), Bairstow, Brook, Jacks, Ali, Curran, Archer, Rashid, Jordan, Wood
How to watch
Sky have the rights to show the T20 World Cup to UK viewers in 2024 and will broadcast every game live. Coverage gets underway on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Cricket from 1am UK time on Thursday morning.
In India, the games can be streamed on Disney + Hotstar app and website. They are also available across the Star Sports Network.
Another win! ✅
We beat Namibia and the rain in Saint George 🏴#EnglandCricket | #ENGvNAM pic.twitter.com/W9rHAsY133
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 15, 2024
Prediction
The Windies beat England 3-2 in a T20 series in December and will go in as favourites given their current form and knowledge of the conditions.
England should not be discounted, though. Barring a below-par performance against Australia, Buttler’s men have looked strong albeit against weak opposition.
This represents a major step up in class but it’s one we feel England can cope with and we’re backing them to open their Super Eight campaign with a morale-boosting win.
