World Cup 2019, Match 39: Sri Lanka vs West Indies – Fantain Fantasy Cricket Tips

One might wonder what the big deal was when Pakistan defeated Afghanistan. But it was. Afghanistan came very close to defeating the Men in Green, as they did against India. Afghanistan might not have won any match in World Cup 2019, but they have made a big mark with their performance and how close they are to defeating the mighty teams. That should be the take away; that the team has the potential to make it to the next round at the next season of the World Cup.

Meanwhile, two other teams that didn’t leave a mark are Sri Lanka and West Indies. Losing by rather large margins, the two teams have only pride to play for. This match looks interesting because both teams are not in great form and coming here on the back of defeats. Here is all you need to read for both the teams before picking your Fantain XI.

Team News:

Sri Lanka

Having started the World Cup campaign with little to none victories under their belt, Sri Lanka had no burden of expectations on their shoulders. Their 9-wicket defeat against South Africa confirmed the collective lack of performance and delivery in all departments of the Sri Lankan team. The pitch did nothing to help them either. Their best moment so far has been the victory against England. Malinga was the star.

Karunaratne is the highest scorer (97 runs) with no centurions from the team.

Malinga has now hinted at international retirement.

Predicted XI: Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Suranga Lakmal, Isuru Udana, Thisara Perera, Jeevan Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Kusal Perera (wk), Kusal Mendis, Avishka Fernando

West Indies

This team looked good enough to have made it to the Semi-Finals. Apart from the 5-run loss against New Zealand, the rest of the margins were rather considerable. With Brathwaite being the only centurion in the team ( Hope came pretty close with 96), and the bowlers not making much of an impact; West Indies has a lot of homework to do on what happened and the way forward.

Predicted XI: Chris Gayle, Kemar Roach, Carlos Brathwaite, Jason Holder (c), Sunil Ambris, Sheldon Cottrell, Nicholas Pooran, Fabian Allen, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope (wk), Oshane Thomas

Top Picks

Hope, Gayle and Brathwaite: If anyone can hit the ball out of the park in this match, it is up to these three players.

Cottrell: Known for his consistency, Cottrell can be the strength of the bowling lineup and your Fantain Fantasy Cricket team.

Malinga: He knows to stick to the basics: line and length; and sometimes that is the best strategy to win. No fancy moves. Just old-school.

Fantain Fantasy XI:

Batsmen: Gaye, Hetmyer, Karunarathne

Bowlers: Cottrell, Malinga, Roach

All-Rounders: Holder, Brathwaite, Dhananjaya

WK: Hope, Perera

This is our Fantain Fantasy XI but you’re the real expert.