🏏ICC T20I WC 2024: S8 - Match 46: USA vs WI @6:00 AM IST🏏

🏏ICC T20I WC 2024: S8 - Match 46:

USA vs WI on 22/06/2024 @6:00 AM IST🏏

Venue: Kensington Oval Bridgetown, Barbados

The West Indies(WI) will lock horns with the USA at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on June 22, 2024, at 6 am IST.
Clash of the T20 WC co-hosts as WI and USA seek crucial points.  USA, who began the tournament on fire, haven't won since their upset over Pakistan in the group stages. 

This is an encounter that the tournament did not anticipate, yet one that it rightfully merits. The co-hosts of this year's T20 World Cup navigated their way through the group-stages, each employing distinctive methods that varied in their degree of surprise. 

The West Indies asserted their dominance in the league phase, securing convincing victories in all four matches. In contrast, the USA, despite commencing the tournament with a couple of wins, relied on adverse weather conditions in Florida to narrowly advance past Pakistan. Pakistan, despite winning their last couple of league games, fell short of qualification.

However, both teams encountered setbacks in their initial Super Eight matches in distinctive manners, underscoring the significance and pivotal nature of their upcoming clash. The team that suffers defeat in this contest will witness a substantial decline in their chances of advancing, thus rendering this match a critical must-win scenario for both sides.

Pitch Report and Conditions

Bridgetown has seen higher scoring rates compared to other tournament venues, despite the low-scoring match between Namibia and Oman that marked the tournament's start. As the day transitions into a muggy evening, the chances of precipitation are minimal, with clear skies anticipated. It will be a humid evening, with chances of rain low.This upcoming fixture at the Kensington Oval will mark the sixth game of this edition's T20 World Cup.

Head-to-Head Record

There have been no prior international encounters between the West Indies and the USA, making their upcoming Super Eight clash the inaugural meeting between these two sides.

Team news

King's unavailability means West Indies need a replacement at the top of the order. Shimron Hetmyer is likely to get the call-up.

West Indies: 1 Shimron Hetmyer 2 Johnson Charles 3 Nicolas Pooran (wk) 4 Rovman Powell (capt) 5 Roston Chase 6 Andre Russell 7 Sherfane Rutherford 8 Romaria Shepherd 9 Akeal Hosein 10 Alzarri Joseph 11 Gudakesh Motie

USA captain Monank Patel has not played since the game against Pakistan due to a shoulder injury, and remains a doubt for this contest. Jasdeep Singh, meanwhile, endured a horror game that saw him concede 28 off his first five balls, which could bring Shadley van Schalkwyk back into the frame

USA: 1 Steven Taylor 2 Andries Gous (wk) 3 Nitish Kumar 4 Aaron Jones (capt) 5 Corey Anderson 6 Shayan Jahangir 7 Harmeet Singh 8 Nosthush Kenjinge 9 Shadley van Schalkwyk 10 Ali Khan 11 Saurabh Netravalkar

Stats and trivia

• The USA are looking to become the first non Full Member to make the semi-finals of an ICC event since Kenya reached that stage in 2003.

• West Indies have played two T20 World Cup matches in Barbados, both at the 2010 tournament. They split the games, losing to Sri Lanka before beating India.

• Obed McCoy and Akeal Hosein are both closing in on wicket-taking milestones, one and two wickets away respectively from 50 T20I scalps.

What they said:

" We did not execute our plans [against England] well enough. But in a tournament, there's a game where the opposition will get the better of you. But that doesn't mean you're out of it. Now, in order to win, we've got to win all our matches. And that's what we'll focus on. We will leave this game in St. Lucia." - Daren Sammy

"It's a wonderful feeling. I'm representing my parents, my Jamaican heritage. At the end of the day, I might be born American but I speak more Jamaican than I speak American sometimes. So, it's a great feeling playing against West Indies, growing up, watching Laras, Chris Gayles, all the big fans and to have the chance of playing against them now and in a World Cup stage." - Steven Taylor

Probable Best Performers

Probable Best Batter: Aaron Jones

Since Monank Patel's absence following the match against Pakistan, Jones has taken charge. After the stand-in captain was dismissed for a duck against South Africa, he would be eager to demonstrate the same skills showcased during the tournament's curtain-raiser against Canada.

Probable Best Bowler: Gudakesh Motie

Given the track favoring spinners in Barbados, and with Motie's adeptness and diverse repertoire as a left-arm spinner, his consistent form throughout the tournament suggests he will capitalize on favorable pitch conditions provided he lands the ball on the right areas.

Scenario 1

West Indies win the toss and opt to bat first.

Powerplay Score: 45-55

West Indies: 175-195

West Indies win the match.

Scenario 2

USA win the toss and opt to bat first.

Powerplay Score: 40-50

USA: 150-170

West Indies win the match.

Disclaimer: The prediction is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While making your prediction, consider the points mentioned, and make your own decision.

The fate of the co-hosts hang by the thread as the two teams clash in Barbados in a virtual eliminator. West Indies emerged unscathed out of what was perceived as the group of death, beating New Zealand and Afghanistan, but faltered in the first Super 8 game against England. USA went down against South Africa in Antigua but not before giving the Proteas a mighty scare on the back of a heroic 91-run stand between Andries Gous and Harmeet Singh for the sixth wicket. While West Indies start favorite against USA, Rovman Powell's men wouldn't want to count their chickens before they are hatched as USA have shown time and again the threatening side that they are. 

West Indies would be without the services of their regular opener Brandon King atleast for the game against USA. Brandon King's unavailability pose a pertinent challenge for the Windies. To add to their woes, the next man in would be facing a red hot Saurabh Netravalkar who's having a time of his life in the tournament. The Windies opener would be wary of Netravalkar who is making quite a habit of making early inroads with his new ball spell. The opening act becomes all the more imperative for the Windies in order to unleash their battery of burgeoning power hitters after dodging the perils of the new ball. 

Monank Patel's unavailability at the top of the order brings in added responsibility for their most experienced batter, Steven Taylor. The south paw has been a shadow of himself in the tournament. He did show signs of returning to his menacing best with a quickfire 24 in the previous game but the onslaught was cut short with a soft dismissal, which has been his nemesis throughout his career. Before the start of USA's campaign, there was an overwhelming feeling about USA's fortunes relying heavily on Corey Anderson. Four games into the tournament, Anderson has failed to take centrestage with the bat. USA would hope for him to come to the party with their semi final spot on the line.

In the spotlight - Russell and Taylor

He has been one of T20 cricket's most valuable players for the best part of the last decade, but Andre Russell has been kept uncharacteristically quiet for the best part of this World Cup. A pair of unbeaten cameos against PNG and Uganda are about as good as it's good for him with the bat, and though he continues to chip in with wickets, it is that explosiveness at the death West Indies really need him for. Part of it simply has to do with the batters higher up making sure he wasn't required, but on the two occasions he was - against New Zealand and England - he fell cheaply. As a veteran of both of West Indies' triumphant World Cup campaigns, he will know he's expected to be a lot more influential for his side in the second half of this tournament if they are to go the distance again.

Steven Taylor's rise appeared to be proof that cricket in America was capable of attracting US-born athletes to this sport. A precocious rising star through his teenage years, he has been involved with American cricket for well over a decade. This World Cup should have been his crowning glory, but while Aaron Jones, Andries Gous and Saurabh Netravalkar have shone, Taylor has struggled to convert starts into substance at the top of the order. Born to Jamaican parents, he has history with the West Indies, and was once stripped of the US captaincy after he chose to play the CPL over a USA World Cup qualifier. He now comes up against the side he once declared an intention to play for, and the stakes could hardly be higher.