WI vs ENG Match Preview
Andre Russell was the star of the show for West Indies as they clinched the first match of the T20I series against England. The burly all-rounder picked up three wickets and later played a vital cameo to ensure that West Indies won the first match with a margin of four wickets and eleven balls to spare. Russell scored an unbeaten 29 from 14 balls, and before the batting effort, he also picked up three wickets for 19 runs against the English batting line-up. He was promptly adjudged player of the match for this performance.
Apart from Andre Russell, Alzarri Joseph also picked up three wickets but gave away 54 runs in his 3.3 overs. Romario Shepherd picked up two victims for 22 runs in his quota of four overs. Jason Holder and Akeal Hosein picked up one wicket each during the England inning. While chasing a score of 171 runs, the Caribbeans made a good start, with top-order batters such as Brandon King, Kyle Myers, and Shai Hope all contributing to the team's cause. The skipper Rovman Powell also played a helpful hand.
In the first T20I game of the series, England batted first to score 171 runs all out from 19.3 overs. The Englishmen also made an excellent start to their inning, with both their openers scoring runs as they raced to 77 in 6.3 overs for the opening wicket. But after these openers were dismissed, the English innings went on a downward graph, and only Liam Livingstone made a decent contribution lower down the order. Phil Salt was the leading batter for England, scoring 40 runs from just 20 balls with six fours and one six.
The England captain, Jos Butler, also hit 39 runs from 31 balls with five fours and one six. Lower down the order, Liam Livingstone scored 27 runs from 19 balls, hitting two sixes and one four. The lower and lower middle order capitulated under pressure, and the entire team was bowled out. The England bowling attack was spearheaded by Rehan Ahmed, who picked up three wickets for 39 runs from his four overs. Adil Rashid also picked up a couple of victims. Chris Woaks picked up the only other wicket to fall.
Weather Report
The weather conditions during the afternoon when the first innings will be played will remain sunny. There is some possibility of getting showers in the evening. The temperatures during the match will hover between 26 and 29 degrees. The relative humidity will be in a comfortable range.
Pitch Report
Five of the six T20I games played at this venue have been won by the side batting first. So, the skipper winning the toss will bat first and exploit the batting conditions on the ground. The team batting first will look to score close to 175 runs to feel safe in their defense.
Notable stats
West Indies has fared better in the recent T20I games against England.
West Indies leads the head-to-head between the two countries 3-2 in their last five encounters.
Jos Buttler has an excellent average-to-strike rate ratio in recent T20I matches.
Jos Buttler has scored runs with an average of 51.5 and a strike rate of 150.73 in his last nine games for England.
Team News
There are no injury worries reported so far, as we are just arriving at the second game of the series.
WI vs ENG Probable 11
WI Playing 11
- Brandon King
- Kyle Mayers
- Shai Hope
- Nicholas Pooran (Wk)
- Shimron Hetmyer
- Rovman Powell (C)
- Romario Shepherd
- Andre Russell
- Jason Holder
- Akeal Hosein
- Alzarri Joseph
ENG Playing 11
- Phil Salt
- Jos Buttler (C)
- Will Jacks
- Ben Duckett
- Harry Brook
- Liam Livingstone
- Sam Curran
- Chris Woakes
- Rehan Ahmed
- Adil Rashid
- Tymal Mills
Dream11 Prediction
We reckon the defending T20I world champions, England, will make a comeback in the series and win the second game. There’s not much in it, though, as the Caribbeans have convincingly succeeded in winning the first match.
Top Picks
Jos Buttler: Jos Buttler has scored 309 runs in his last nine games with an average of 51.5 and a strike rate of 150.73.
Romario Shepherd: Romarion Shepherd has picked up 12 wickets from his last nine games with a strike rate 15.41.
Nicholas Pooran: Nicholas Pooran has put together 261 runs from his last ten matches with a strike rate of 148.29 and an average of 26.1.
Gus Atlkinson: Atkinson has picked up six scalps from his last couple of games for England with a strike rate of 6.83.
WI vs ENG Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: J Buttler (VC), N Pooran
Batters: S Hope, K Mayers, B King, R Powell
All-rounders: C Woakes, A Russell (C), L Livingstone
Bowlers: A Rashid, A Joseph
