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MATCH PREVIEW: Ireland v West Indies (3rd T20I)

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ST. KITTS AND NEVIS – The third and final men’s T20 International between hosts West Indies and the touring Ireland gets underway at 10pm (local time) at Warner Park in Basseterre, St. Kitts on Sunday 19 January 2020.
This match will be broadcast on Sky Sports Cricket in Ireland / UK.

The series decider. Yesterday’s abandoned match due to rain means that the series outcome today will either be an Irish victory or a drawn series result. It was probably too much to expect Ireland to match its record-breaking efforts in the first game of the T20I series with a change of venue and a match being played fully under lights in more challenging conditions, but the Irish total last night – albeit slightly below par – at least gave the bowlers something to defend. And the early wicket raised hopes, before the downpour ended the match.

Unfortunately, locals believe conditions in St. Kitts will be similar to yesterday, so we may not a game without a rain break or two – but we can hope for a result, with both sides looking to bowl first if they win the toss.

Ireland

The concerning news for Ireland last night was the hamstring strain to captain Andrew Balbirnie sustained during his innings, after which he didn’t take the field. Paul Stirling deputised in the brief time the second innings was in play, but Balbirnie’s batting and captaincy will be sorely missed if he has to withdraw from Game Three

While first game batting heroes, Stirling and Kevin O’Brien could not repeat their success last night, it did give the likes of Balbirnie, Gareth Delany and Harry Tector time in the middle to show their wares. Delany, particularly, impressed fans with a big-hitting 44 from 22 balls, and Harry Tector held the innings together towards the end, making 31. Balbirnie himself played some sublime shots in his 36, and looked comfortable at the crease before being caught in the outfield trying to up the tempo.

Not enough was seen of the Irish bowlers in Game Two, but Stirling’s use of himself for the first (wicket-taking) over, and a good follow up over by Simi Singh probably showed how important slow bowling and variation will be on this small ground.

Ireland’s ODI squad is: Andrew Balbirnie (Captain), Mark Adair, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Kevin O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Gary Wilson, Craig Young.

West Indies

The West Indies won’t want to lose a home series and will consider last night a lost opportunity to push for a series win. Their bowlers – particularly Kieron Pollard – put up a much more disciplined display, and their fielding improved, albeit with a couple of dropped catches that may have been expected to be taken in normal circumstances.

Not enough was seen of the batting last night, but Game One demonstrated that they are in good touch.

West Indies ODI squad is: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Khary Pierre, Nicholas Pooran, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Lendl Simmons, Hayden Walsh Jr, Kesrick Williams.

Key players

Ireland – Paul Stirling

The talisman may likely be the on-field captain too if Balbirnie cannot play. Stirling’s approach to batting is very clear when it comes to this format – express yourself and try enjoy it. His ability to pick up the length early and his unapologetic approach to going the aerial route were on full display in both innings of the series, and his scooped shot for six in Game Two shows his inventiveness. Stirling captained the T20I side for a series in Oman in 2019 and impressed with his strategy and calculated risk-taking. Expect more of that to be demonstrated tonight if he gets the ‘proverbial armband’.

West Indies – Kieron Pollard

Once again, Pollard is a central figure – and last night showed why. The Windies captain, shouldered the burdens of his team last night claiming four wickets and bowling supremely well with the use of pace and angle variation. His batting is brutal when on-song, but in this last match, his captaincy will be crucial – his ability to marshall his troops and keep them focused may be decisive to the outcome.

Key to the contest

The bowlers will again be the key – from both sides. Tonight’s match will throw up conditions challenging to the batters, so the bowlers will need to be disciplined and accurate, with short boundaries on this ground. For the Windies, their pace attack has been key, but for Ireland, the use and effectiveness of their spinners may decide the outcome of this match.

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Craig Easdown
Gareth Delany hit four consecutive sixes off Hayden Walsh Jr during Game Two
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