ABOUT THE MATCH
After a long gap of nearly four months with COVID-19 lockdown, finally, the international cricket match is resumed again as some measures being eased in Europe. To play a 3-match Test series, West Indies have traveled to England while some of the top-class West Indies players have selected for the tour. This match will surely be a very interesting series. It will be held at the Rose Bowl, Southampton from July 8-20, 2020 at 03.30 PM (IST).
Teams & Players’ performance Analysis:
Top Order Analysis
- From the West Indies squad, Campbell has the Avg strike rate of 84.2 and has an impressive Avg runs of 35.2 runs in his last 5 test innings.
- From the England side, Zak Crawley has an and Avg strike rate of 61.6 and with 49.2 Avg runs.
Middle Order Analysis
- In the Middle-order from the Windies side – Dowrich has decent figures with Avg strike rate of 47.2 & Avg runs of 40.8.
- And from the England side – Butler looks good with an Avg strike rate of 43 and Avg runs of 35.2.
Top and Middle-order Analysis
- From the top order – West Indies has a clear edge over England and in the middle order analysis, Both the teams look quite similar.
Top 3 Bowlers
- From the West Indies side – Kemar Roach is impressive with a total wicket of 23 in his last 5 test innings with an impressive economy rate of 5.8 runs.
- From the England side – Anderson has picked 23 wickets with an economy rate of 6.9 runs.
Bowling Analysis
- When it comes to total number wickets – England has a slight edge over the West Indies and in the Average Economy rate, West Indies is doing good when compared to England.
England
For this Test match, the captain of England, Joe Root won’t be available. He is on paternity leave. So, no.4 is vacant, and at this position, maybe Ollie Pope bat at this position. A few months back, he made a Test hundred in South Africa. At no. 5 and no.6, Joe Denyl and stand-in skipper Ben Stokes may play while Jos Buttler will perform the wicket-keeping duties.
In the England line-up, Dom Bess may be the only spinner, while the Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, and James Anderson will form a pace trio.
Predicted XI:
Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley, Zak Crawley, Joe Denly, Ben Stokes (C), Ollie Pope, Jos Buttler (WK), Dom Bess, James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood/Stuart Broad.
West Indies
The pace attack of the West Indies team is fantastic involving Kemar Roach, Captain Jason Holder, Shannon Gabriel, and Alzarri Joseph, while Roston Chase is the only all-rounder and spin bowler batting at no.5.
In the absence of Shimron Hetmyer and Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks and Jermaine Blackwood will play at n.4 and n0. 6 positions respectively.
Predicted XI:
Kraigg Brathwaite, John Campbell, Shai Hope, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Jermaine Blackwood, Shane Dowrich (WK), Jason Holder (C), Alzarri Joseph/Rahkeem Cornwall, Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel.
Toss Prediction:
Normally, the Rose Bowl is a good batting pitch, but the toss winning team most probably choose to field first and use the advantage of the surface.
Pitch Report:
This is the initial time of English summer and here there has not been played any country game in the Rose Bowl. Therefore, the track might have a little bit extra juice in it, to begin with, and the pace bowlers may take advantage of it.
Weather condition:
In Southampton, the weather condition will be partly cloudy during the match time, but the rain has not predicted either of the five days match.
The temperature in between 10 degrees Celsius to 20 degrees Celsius which means no cold weather can be expected, which will be perfect for the Test match.
Match Preview:
West Indies:
- Last time, when these two sides played opposite to each other in a Test series in West Indies, England defeated by team West Indies by 2-1.
- But in this English condition, it would be tough for the Caribbean boys to repeat that performance.
- The bowling department of West Indies squad is very strong as compared to its batting department.
- They are lagging solid performers at the top of the order as it is very much necessary in English conditions.
England:
- England is perfectly ready to take the avenge of its previous loss with the West Indies.
- As compared to the West Indies team, the England team is looking more stable.
- Earlier this year, the England team registered a series win in South Africa, and at that moment their bowling, as well as batting sides, were looking perfectly balanced.
Head to head:
- Overall Test Matches – 157
- England won – 49
- West Indies won – 57
- Draw – 51
- Tied – 0
Team form in last 5 matches:
- West Indies – W, L, L, L, W
- England – D, L, W, W, W
Probable top performers:
- West Indies – Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Kemar Roach
- England–Ben Stokes, Jos Butler, James Anderson
Broadcast Details:
- Tv – Sony Ten Network
- Live Streaming – Sony Liv App
- Match Timings – 8th July 2020 at 03:30 PM IST
Probable winning team:
Considering the home conditions of England, surely they have an upper hand going into this match, but West Indies team is very unpredictable and in case the West Indies batsmen up to the form, they might give a difficult challenge for team England. But England has a higher chance to win this encounter.