Friday, April 25, 2025
4:56 PM
Doha,Qatar
West Indies players

Six appeal as England face Windies in T20 final

A new-look England and a resurgent West Indies will battle to become the first two-time winners of cricket's World Twenty20 in a big-hitting showdown Sunday that promises to rain sixes.

A year after exiting the 50-over World Cup with egg on their face, Eoin Morgan's England will hope to complete their redemption by outmuscling a West Indies team who are themselves a team reborn.

Inspired by the ultimate game changer Chris Gayle, the men from the Caribbean are hoping to go home with the shortest format's biggest prize on the same day that their women are also gunning for glory at Kolkata's iconic Eden Gardens stadium against Australia in an earlier final.

Gayle will be looking to become the first player to crack a century of sixes in T20 internationals, having already smashed a record 98 -- 11 of them in the current tournament.

England meanwhile will hope to add to their tally of 34 sixes in the tournament, more than any other team, underlining their transformation into the game's great entertainers. 

Jason Roy, one of the stars of the new-look England, promised they would come at their opponents ‘with all guns blazing’ and continue in the same aggressive vein that has confounded their old conservative reputation.

‘It's going to be an incredible experience but we are going to play our natural way and the brand of cricket we have have been playing for the last year or so,’ said Roy after smacking 78 in just 44 balls in the first semi-final against New Zealand.

England won the 2010 World T20 but they failed to build on that triumph and were widely ridiculed for their demise in 2015 when they lost to every major side in the World Cup.

That embarrassment came a year after their meek exit from the last World T20 in Bangladesh which included a defeat to the Netherlands.

But pundits have been showering praise on Morgan's team in India, with former skipper Nasser Hussain among those won over by ‘a side who don't fear anyone’.

 

- 'Not a one-man show' -

The criticism heaped on England would have sounded familiar to a West Indies team which has had to put up with brickbats from stars of their heyday in the 1980s when the likes of Viv Richards and Malcolm Marshall ruled the world.

But while the Test team is a shadow of its former self, the West Indies' limited overs side has been a formidable unit for some time and won the 2012 World T20 in Sri Lanka.

Gayle, ridiculed for a clumsy bid to chat up an Australian TV reporter in January, has long been their dangerman.

But the 36-year-old, who could be playing in his last major tournament, has failed to notch up a decent score in his last two innings after earlier setting the competition alight with an unbeaten century against England.

Unsung sluggers such as Lendl Simmons, Jonathan Charles and Andre Russell have instead come to the party, with India's spin bowlers the latest to be carted around the park in Thursday's second semi-final.

‘England will certainly be aware that it is certainly not a one-man show in this team,’ Simmons said afterwards.

Following their early setback against the Windies, England gave themselves a major confidence injection by chasing down a record 230 target against South Africa in their next game.

And after sometimes nervy wins against Afghanistan and holders Sri Lanka, England halted the previously unbeaten New Zealand juggernaut in its tracks in New Delhi.

Joe Root, who has scored 195 runs in five matches, has been the pick of their batsmen.

But England have also relied heavily on all-rounder Ben Stokes whose near-perfect death bowling has taken them over the line in crunch ties.

The West Indies have also shown their metal at the death, with Simmons and Russell completing their chase in Mumbai with two balls to spare, reaching their total with a six.

Teams:

England (probable): Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jos Buttler (wkt), Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey

West Indies (probable): Darren Sammy (capt), Samuel Badree, Sulieman Benn, Carlos Brathwaite, Dwayne Bravo, Johnson Charles, Lendl Simmons, Chris Gayle, Denesh Ramdin, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels

 

 

Comments
  • There are no comments.

Add Comments

B1Details

Latest News

SPORT

Canada's youngsters set stage for new era

Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you are saying farewell to those that have left a positive impression. That was the case earlier this month when Canada hosted Mexico in a friendly at BC Place stadium in Vancouver.

1:43 PM February 26 2017
TECHNOLOGY

A payment plan for universal education

Some 60mn primary-school-age children have no access to formal education

11:46 AM December 14 2016
CULTURE

10-man Lekhwiya leave it late to draw Rayyan 2-2

Lekhwiya’s El Arabi scores the equaliser after Tresor is sent off; Tabata, al-Harazi score for QSL champions

7:10 AM November 26 2016
ARABIA

Yemeni minister hopes 48-hour truce will be maintained

The Yemeni Minister of Tourism, Dr Mohamed Abdul Majid Qubati, yesterday expressed hope that the 48-hour ceasefire in Yemen declared by the Command of Coalition Forces on Saturday will be maintained in order to lift the siege imposed on Taz City and ease the entry of humanitarian aid to the besieged

10:30 AM November 27 2016
ARABIA

QM initiative aims to educate society on arts and heritage

Some 200 teachers from schools across the country attended Qatar Museum’s (QM) first ever Teachers Council at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) yesterday.

10:55 PM November 27 2016
ARABIA

Qatar, Indonesia to boost judicial ties

The Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) of Qatar and the Indonesian Supreme Court (SCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on judicial co-operation, it was announced yesterday.

10:30 AM November 28 2016
ECONOMY

Sri Lanka eyes Qatar LNG to fuel power plants in ‘clean energy shift’

Sri Lanka is keen on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar as part of government policy to shift to clean energy, Minister of City Planning and Water Supply Rauff Hakeem has said.

10:25 AM November 12 2016
B2Details
C7Details