WT20: West Indies look to attack England with spin
Defending champions England would like to overcome the disappointment of recording their lowest-ever Twenty20 total and return to winning ways when they take on a dangerous West Indies in their opening Super Eight match of the ICC World Twenty20 here on Thursday.
Defending champions England would like to overcome the disappointment of recording their lowest-ever Twenty20 total and return to winning ways when they take on a dangerous West Indies in their opening Super Eight match of the ICC World Twenty20 here on Thursday.
After starting their campaign on a high with a comprehensive win over minnows Afghanistan, Stuart Broad's men failed big time against India in their last group match.
Chasing a competitive 171-run target, England were found wanting against the turning ball as spin duo of Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla ripped apart the opposition batting line-up to bundle them out for a paltry 80.
Against India, the only English batsman to show some teeth was wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter, who scored a 25-ball 35.
English opening combination of Alex Hales and Kieswetter has been inconsistent in the tournament so far. But come Thursday, the onus would be on them to provide a perfect launch pad against the West Indies, which comprises of a wayward opening attack.
In Luke Wright, England possesses a dangerous number three batsmen who can tear apart any bowling line-up on his given day.
Even though he failed miserably against the Indians, Wright showed his big-hitting prowess in England's tournament opener against Afghanistan with a 55-ball 99 and skipper Broad would be banking heavily on the right-hander to produce a substantial knock again.
But come tomorrow, the task won't be easy for the English batting line-up as in mystery spinner Sunil Narine and Chris Gayle, the Caribbeans possess a dangerous spin attack.
Considering England's weakness against spin, West Indies skipper Darren Sammy could well be tempted to play leg-spinner Samuel Badri ahead of all-rounder Andre Russel.
The Englishmen, however, can fancy their chances against an erratic West Indian seam attack, which so far has looked pretty ordinary in the tournament.
Probable 11 for the match:
England squad:
SCJ Broad (Captain), JM Bairstow, TT Bresnan, JC Buttler, JW Dernbach, ST Finn, C Kieswetter (WK), EJG Morgan, SR Patel, GP Swann, LJ Wright.
West Indies squad:
DJG Sammy (Captain) CH Gayle,
J Charles, DM Bravo, MN Samuels, KA Pollard, AD Russell, D Ramdin (WK), SP Narine, R Rampaul, FH Edwards.