The 26th match of the tournament will be of Group C between West Indies (WI) and New Zealand (NZ). The match will be live at 06:00 A.M. (IST) and 08:30 P.M. (local).
West Indies has managed two back to back victories in their pool and their last was against Uganda where they defeated them in a humiliating way while the Blackcaps got a one sided defeat against Afghanistan in their opening World Cup match.
Teams Analysis
West Indies (WI):
The Caribbean is inches close to their Super 8 qualification. If they win this match, then their chances for the next round will be much more easier. Their batting has been decent but their bowling has been their main trump in this T20 World Cup. In their first match they looked a little uncomfortable against PNG but against Uganda they roared like a lion and thrashed them quite easily.
Their openers Brandon King and Johnson Charles have performed decently till now. King has scored 47 runs with a strike rate of 127.03 while Charles has been little defensive as he scored 44 runs with a strike rate of 102.33. But these two need to stay for a little longer together so that the upcoming batters can play freely.
Nicholas Pooran is currently their leader in the batting department as he scored most runs for the team with 49 runs to his credit. But that aggressiveness is still missing as his strike rate is only 111.36. Skipper Rovman Powell has been little out of touch with the destruction as his strike rate is only 118.75 and managed just 38 runs with the bat. He didn’t bowl yet in this tournament.
Team’s main all-rounder Andre Russell is standing by his role well. With the bat his strike rate is 173.08 and showed his power hitting in the death overs and scored 45 runs till now. He did not get out in both the matches. While with the bowl, he got 3 wickets with an economy of 5.75.
Akeal Hosein bowled his career best in the last match where he grabbed 5 wickets in his 4 overs by giving away only 11 runs. His total wicket count goes to 6 in this tournament and has a fantastic economy of 2.86. Alzarri Joseph got 4 wickets in the tournament till now with an economy of 5.71.
Probable Playing 11 of West Indies (WI):
Rovman Powell ©, Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Roston Chase, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie.
New Zealand (NZ):
Despite a huge defeat against Afghanistan, they have the capacity to make a grand comeback anytime. They are currently at the bottom of the points table in their pool, but they played only one match till now and they have plenty of matches to go to the top of it. But still they need to strengthen their batting unit more as it collapses against Afghanistan drastically.
Finn Allen is known for his destruction from the start as his strike rate in international matches is 163.37. But he got out on a golden duck in the first match. He needs to make his bat sound so that the team can get a good start. On the other hand, Devon Conway who is making a comeback from the injury got only 8 runs with the bat in the first match. He has plenty of experience and this will help him to get back on track easily.
Skipper Kane Williamson also showed upsets but this batting as he managed just 9 runs in 13 balls. He has the capacity to go big after making his foot stick to the ground. He is known for his patience knocks and this helped him to go big. His strike rate in international format is 123.18.
Finishers Mark Chapman and Glenn Phillips also failed to contribute much with the bat. Phillips got 18 runs while Chapman just scored 4 runs. Both of them have the capacity to go big in the death overs, especially Phillips whose strike rate is 142.61. Both of them can contribute in the spin department also.
Looking at their bowling unit, Trent Boult performed according to which he is known for. He got 2 wickets in his 4 overs by giving away 22 runs. He is well known for taking wickets in the very first over of the match and the opposition need to be sure about him. Matt Henry also got 2 wickets but was little expensive in his spell after giving away 37 runs in his 4 overs.
Probable Playing 11 of New Zealand (NZ):
Kane Williamson ©, Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Trent Boult, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson.
Pitch Report for the match between West Indies (WI) and New Zealand (NZ):
The match will be played at Brian Lara Stadium, Tarouba, Trinidad. This will be the first match that will be played in this tournament. The surface gets slower as the match progresses, therefore bowlers can get a huge amount of help from the pitch. The 1st innings average score is 145 while the average 2nd innings score is 133. Batters struggled to get to the bowl easily. Spinners will get ample amount of turn from this. Therefore batting first might be an ideal option after winning the toss.
Weather Report:
The weather is expected to be cloudy most of the time but the rain expectancy is only about 20%. Therefore a full match will be played. Though the humidity will be quite high and is expected to be above 70%. The highest temperature may go up by 32 degree celsius while the lowest maydrop down to 26 degree celsius.
Best 11 for the match between West Indies (WI) and New Zealand (NZ):
Nicholas Pooran, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Brandon King, Andre Russell (vc), Mitchell Santner ©, Micheal Bracewell, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Trent Boult.