The bowlers have had to work hard to pick up wickets at Sharjah. Just 1 of the last 4 matches played here have seen 14 or more wickets fall. Also, none of the last 3 Matches involving the West Indies have seen over 13.5 wickets fall.
3 of the last 4 matches played at Sharjah have seen at least 1 over where 14 or more runs were scored. As both teams have some clean strikers of the ball, we are bound to see at least 1 big over in this match as well.
New Zealand to win the match 1.597
After a grueling schedule of the group stages, we now have our 4 semi-finalists in the ongoing WT20 World Cup. The second semi-final will see the West Indies take on New Zealand at the Sharjah International Cricket Stadium on Friday. The winner of this fixture will take on either Australia or South Africa on Sunday in the Finals.
The two teams have faced each other in 23 matches to date. New Zealand won 15 while the West Indies won five. Two matches ended in a tie while one ended without a result.
This match will be live-streamed on the Disney+ Hotstar App. You can also watch it live on the Star Sports Network.
After losing its opening fixture, the West Indies made a strong comeback and are now on a 3-match winning streak, the latest of which was against England. As a result, they finished at the top of the points table thanks to an excellent NRR.
Qiana Joseph, who was promoted up the order in the match against England, slammed a brisk half-century and provided brilliant support to Hayley Matthews. The latter remains the key player for the West Indies thanks to her all-round capabilities.
Deandra Dottin is a solid performer in the middle order and can strike some lusty blows during the death overs. Stefanie Taylor and Shemaine Campbelle have had a couple of good starts but the team will need at least one of them to stay till the end.
Coming to the bowling, Afy Fletcher is the leading wicket-taker for the team with 8 wickets. She, along with Karishma Ramharack and Matthews makes up for a strong spin attack. The seamers however have struggled with Chinelle Henry managing to pick only 1 wicket so far.
New Zealand lost just 1 match during the group stages and finished 2nd in the Group A table.
Georgia Plimmer and Suzie Bates have been a consistent opening pair and will hope to give the White Ferns a strong start here.
Plimmer is the leading run-scorer for New Zealand with 108 runs. Sophie Devine and Amelia Kerr make up for a strong middle order and both are averaging more than 28 runs per innings. In addition, the likes of Lea Tahuhu, Brooke Halliday, and Isabella Gaze provide depth to New Zealand’s batting.
Amelia Kerr is the leading wicket-taker for the team with 10 wickets and will be supported by Fran Jonas and Eden Carson in the spin department. Rosemary Mair, who has picked up 7 wickets so far, will lead the attack with the new ball alongside Lea Tahuhu.
The team winning the toss will likely opt to bat first.
The pitch at the Sharjah is a bit slow. The surface is dry and there isn’t much grass on the pitch. The spinners can expect plenty of help especially if they bowl wicket-to-wicket. While playing the big shots won’t be easy, the batters can score plenty of runs once they settle in. A score of around 150 is a par score on this venue.
The weather is likely to be warm with temperatures of around 33 degrees.
Both teams have chartered similar journeys in this tournament and we can expect a very close contest between the two. Looking at the records, we feel that New Zealand has a slight edge thanks to a stronger batting unit and a well-rounded bowling attack.
Bet on New Zealand W to win.
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