West Indies vs England, 3rd T20I Match Preview, Prediction and Live Streaming

This is the second time the West Indies and England will play a T20 game at St. Lucia this year. Previously, when both sides met here the game ended in a heartbreak for the hosts who endured an eight-wicket defeat in a T20 World Cup Super 8 game. The loss shattered the Windies’ chances of reaching the knockout stages immensely. The situation is somewhat similar this time too. The hosts will once again find England already ahead of them as the latter come off back-to-back wins in the previous two games.

But that’s the thing about the T20I series with more than three games. You have more games to make a case for yourself. England are 2-0 up in the series but this by no way means that the hosts would not be making plans to come from behind and turn the series a full 180. That would take a lot, undoubtedly. The fact that both the wins that the English registers were quite comprehensive and well-earned on England’s part makes matters worse for Rovmann Powell’s men. But there is a reason why it has been more than two years since a visiting team won a T20I series in the Caribbean. England themselves last experienced a series triumph here almost five years ago. It needs to be seen how West Indies manage to keep this streak ticking.

Team Overview:

England fans would have heaved a collective sigh of relief watching Jos Buttler channel his pre-injury batter and take the Windies bowlers to the cleaners in the last game. If England bag this game, they will have the entire series under their belt and for that they need Buttler to again be at the top of his game. This also makes one question whether the wicket-keeper batter’s decision to play at No. 3 was the reason why he could not set his feet firm in the first T20I. Yes, he batted at No. 3 in the second game too but with Phil Salt going for a duck, Buttler had to make an entry to face only the second ball of the inning. And if it really is the case, does this mean that Jos Buttler has to set his sights on Salt’s failure to get going with his usual gear or somehow get himself back to the opening spot? Having won both games with 8 wickets and 7 wickets respectively, only the English top-order has had the chance to flaunt their batting skills. It’s a Schrodinger situation with the remaining batting lineup, but the visitors would want to hinge on the brighter side.

The issue largely with the Windies has been their batting. Bridgetown was not the venue where you find yourself content with 180 runs on the board. English batters made a convincing case for this in the first two games. Interestingly, in both games the West Indies found themselves batting first and due to many reasons, struggling to keep the scoreboard galloping. If the top and middle order can lay a stable ground for the team, especially during the powerplay, the men in maroon can hope to outdo England.

Head-to-Head Matches:

West Indies have been the slightly better side in the 32 T20I games both teams have played so far, with seventeen wins against the English next to their name. England resisted their dominance and won the remaining fifteen matches

Weather and Pitch Report:

St. Lucia is yet another high-scoring venue in the Caribbean with a surface as flat as it gets. Breaching the 200-run mark could be expected, especially if the hitters time their shots to go squarer. The rain has been wreaking havoc in the region and more is expected making the conditions damp, however, the delays are likely to be shorter with the venue’s top-class drainage system. Toss-winning captain should look to bat first to minimize the impact of DLS, in case it rains, as much as possible.

Prediction:

It’s a question of West Indies and the series’ survival for the next three games. The hosts would want to give it their all to pin England to the wall, which makes them more likely to bag the game.