Preview

Barbados will take on St Kitts and Nevis in the second match of the Caribbean T20 League 2021 at the Warner Park in St. Kitts on Thursday evening.

Both the teams had a disastrous campaign in the 2020 season. Barbados won just 3 out of their 10 matches and finished 5th in the standings, whereas St Kitts and Nevis managed just a solitary win out of the 10 games played and were last in the points table. However, this season, both sides will be keen to start on a winning note.

St Kitts and Nevis have T20 superstars Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo in their squad and look pretty formidable on paper. On the other hand, Barbados also look strong with a great mix of young and experienced players.

Match Details

• Game: Barbados vs. St Kitts & Nevis, Match 2
• Venue: Warner Park, St. Kitts
• Date & Time: Aug. 27, 2021, at 4:30 AM IST/7 PM Local(previous day)

Probable Playing XI:

Barbados

• Johnson Charles, Glenn Phillips, Shai Hope (WK), Kyle Mayers, Azam Khan, Jason Holder (C), Thisara Perera, Mohammad Amir, Hayden Walsh, Ashley Nurse, Oshane Thomas

St Kitts & Nevis

• Evin Lewis, Chris Gayle, Sherfane Rutherford, Ravi Bopara, Joshua Da Silva (WK), Dwayne Bravo (C), Fabian Allen, Sheldon Cottrell, Fawad Ahmed, Paul van Meekeren, Dominic Drakes

Weather Report

• The weather is expected to be mostly fair in Basseterre, with some cloud cover during the match. The temperature will be around 26 degrees during the game.

Pitch Report

• The pitch at Warner Park is generally a good playing surface. The batters are likely to have a great time as the ball comes onto the bat quite easily. The surface will not allow a lot of assistance to the bowlers. However, pacers have been more successful at this venue than spinners and are likely to take more wickets here. The average first-innings score in the last five T20s played here has been 180 runs.

Toss

• The team batting first at this venue has won 1 of the last 5 matches played here. So expect the team that wins the toss to opt to bowl first, with batting becoming easier under the lights. A first-innings score of around 190 runs can be a competitive one on this surface.

Top Fantasy Picks

Wicketkeeper

• Joshua Da Silva will be the preferred wicketkeeper for this match. He performed decently in the Test series against Pakistan, taking 8 catches and playing small cameos coming down the order. He is likely to bat higher up the order here and will look to score some quick runs.

Batters

• Glenn Phillips comes here after scoring a match-winning 80 off just 35 balls in the Hundred. He also had an excellent T20 Blast 2021 and is currently the second-highest run scorer of the season. He has scored 500 runs in 12 matches at an average of 55.55 and a strike rate of 163.40.
• Evin Lewis will be a key player for St Kitts and Nevis at the top of the order. He was in good form in the recent games, scoring 329 runs in 10 innings with 3 fifties. Moreover, he was the top scorer for St Kitts last season, making 235 runs at a strike rate of 120.51.

All-Rounders

• Jason Holder is a quality all-rounder who is coming here after a good Test series against Pakistan, with 147 runs and 8 wickets. He had a good last season, scoring 192 runs at a strike rate of 140.14 and taking 10 wickets in 10 matches at an average of 21.33.
• Fabian Allen will be the preferred all-rounder from St. Kitts & Nevis. He has taken 6 T20I wickets and scored 105 runs in his last nine T20I games. He is a big hitter of the cricket ball and can be very effective in the final overs with the bat.

Bowlers

• Hayden Walsh ran havoc against Australia, finishing as the highest wicket taker in the T20I series. He took 12 wickets in five matches at an average of 11.66, with best figures of 3/23. Last season, he took 7 wickets in 10 matches at an average of 25.14.
• Sheldon Cottrell is a decent white-ball bowler with a good T20 record. He played four T20I games during the recent home season and picked up 5 wickets, with best figures of 3/28. He will be looking to continue his good form here.

Howzat Dream Team

• Wicketkeeper: J Da Silva 
• Batters: J Charles, G Phillips, E Lewis, S Rutherford
• All-rounders: J Holder, F Allen, D Bravo
• Bowlers: M Amir, H Walsh, S Cottrell

• Captain: G Phillips/J Holder
• Vice Captain: F Allen/E Lewis

NOTE: The Howzat dream team above is just a suggestion. You can make your fantasy 11 and play fantasy cricket matches. Also, don’t forget to make any necessary changes to your team once the actual playing 11 is announced by each team (30 minutes before the start of the match) as some players you have selected might not be part of the team suggested.

Get fantasy cricket tips on your favorite fantasy sports app and select your own team, Howzat!