Co-host West Indies will play its first match in the Super Eight phase of the 2024 T20 World Cup against defending champion England at the Daren Sammy National Stadium in Gros Islet, St. Lucia on Thursday.
While West Indies enters the contest on the back of a 100 per cent record, England will look to shake off its loss against Australia in the group stage.
After the angst they endured in the group stage, England have floated down to St Lucia on a wave of exhalation.
Whatever happens in their T20 World Cup defence from hereon in, their avoidance of a humiliating first-round exit might yet prove to be as much of a fillip as four rousing wins from four.
Their campaign can begin in earnest now, which is just as well, because they are about to bump into a team with no such concerns to weigh them down.
England and West Indies are each competing for an unprecedented third T20 World Cup title, and the events at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in Beausejour – a venue named in honour of the man who delivered the hosts those first two titles – could go some way towards confirming the readiness, or otherwise, of these two very real contenders for the crown.
West Indies are fit, focused and firing on all cylinders. They come into this contest on an eight-match unbeaten run, and if there were a few early-tournament nerves on show in an anxious pair of Group C victories over Papua New Guinea and New Zealand, then their unmitigated thrashings of Uganda and a highly-rated Afghanistan have assuaged them in uncompromising fashion.
Team news
Not a lot of concerns for West Indies after a dominant display against Afghanistan, although they do have a handful of selection conundrums.
Roston Chase and Shai Hope are competing for the same middle-order berth, while Romario Shepherd missed the last match for paternity leave, but is due back with the squad in good time for the match. He could slot back in ahead of Obed McCoy.
West Indies (possible): 1 Brandon King, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Nicholas Pooran (wk), 4 Shai Hope/Roston Chase, 5 Rovman Powell (capt), 6 Andre Russell, 7 Sherfane Rutherford, 8 Akeal Hossain, 9 Alzarri Joseph, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Obed McCoy/Romario Shepherd.
England mixed it up a touch after the showers in Antigua had reduced their Namibia match to 11 overs, with Sam Curran and Chris Jordan both included to offer a wider range of death-bowling options. Both could keep their places, with Jordan’s death bowling and extra batting giving him an edge over Mark Wood. Will Jacks also seems likely to come back into the XI, potentially down the order at No. 6, with Liam Livingstone missing training due to a sickness bug – but having recovered from the side niggle he suffered against Namibia.
England (possible): 1 Phil Salt, 2 Jos Buttler (capt & wk), 3 Jonny Bairstow, 4 Harry Brook, 5 Moeen Ali, 6 Will Jacks, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Jofra Archer, 9 Mark Wood/Chris Jordan, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Reece Topley
Pitch and conditions
This will be another outing for the belter of a surface on which West Indies racked up 218 for 5 against Afghanistan on Monday, so a high-scoring contest is in prospect.
The dimensions are a touch lop-sided, 63 metres on one square boundary, compared to 72 metres on the other, but the prevailing wind tends to blow to the longer side, so the big hitters can expect some bang for their buck.