Windies vs England, 5th ODI Preview: Determined English brigade desperate to take a trophy home

It really feels like a carnival when the Windies are on song and right now, it indeed is a festive atmosphere in the Caribbean lands with the team getting back on track, exactly at the right time. Despite losing out the 4th ODI narrowly, they made a huge statement of intent to the cricketing fraternity and clearly, they seem back on track.

Both teams have been attempting to out-muscle and outscore each other this series and if the Windies manage to win the final battle, it would rather be a fair result for what has been a hard-fought battle. Nevertheless, it’s difficult to predict with such high-quality present on either side.

This encounter holds paramount importance as England will be desperate to take something back home. While there’s no denying Windies are back in touch, the visiting team will still be a huge force to combat with and will be strongly determined to not draw the series.

Playing Combinations

Windies

The Universe Boss Chris Gayle and John Campbell will open the innings with Shai Hope coming at number 3. Darren Braco, Shimron Hetmyer, Ashley Nurse, Jason Holder and Carlos Brathwaite will form the middle order. Sheldon Cottrell and Oshane Thomas will share the fast bowling responsibilities with skipper Holder with Nurse and Bishoo being the spinning options.

Probable XI: Chris Gayle, John Campbell, Shai Hope (WK), Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder (C), Ashley Nurse, Carlos Brathwaite, Devendra Bishoo, Sheldon Cottrell, Oshane Thomas.

England

Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy will continue to open with Hales at number three. The esteemed presence of Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali in the middle order is the visiting side’s biggest strength. Mark Wood was exceptional in the previous game and would want to continue his prowess alongside Plunkett, Tom Curran and their lone spinner Adil Rashid.

Probable XI: Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (C), Jos Buttler (WK), Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, Tom Curran, Liam Plunkett, Mark Wood.

Focus will be on

Shai Hope (Windies)

Despite earning a great reputation in recent tours, Shai Hope is struggling to cope with the pressure of expectations. The young batting sensation still has a great future to look forward to, but he has some major hurdles in the coming months. He’s just one good knock away from regaining his confidence and maybe, the fifth ODI could be his own.

Adil Rashid (England)

The runs he conceded maybe are a bit too much, but his contribution to England’s wins in this series have been amazing. Adil Rashid came up trumps almost every time he was given the ball, despite getting smacked for some boundaries. He will keep tossing the ball up to test the batters’ hitting ability and will continue to use to the same strategy.

Head to Head

Matches played – 100 | England won – 51 | Windies won – 43 | No Result – 6

StatAttack

6 – Another hundred for Chris Gayle would mean he’s sixth on the list of most centuries in a career in ODIs (It will be his 26th). Currently, he’s on level terms with Kumar Sangakkara and AB de Villiers at 25 centuries.

Broadcast Details

TV – Sony ESPN and Sony ESPN HD

Live Streaming – Sony LIV

Match Timings – 20:30 IST; 11:00 local

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