The rain spoiled what was shaping up to be an excellent second T20 international between West Indies and Ireland in St Kitts on Saturday night and that means that Ireland are assured a share of the series ahead of the two teams meeting for the third and final time in the same venue on Sunday evening.
West Indies head into the contest knowing that they are going to have to win it to share the spoils but there has been a lot to like about Ireland in this series so far and they might feel they are deserving of it.
West Indies
Having been truly dreadful for the first 15 overs with the ball in the opening match of the series, the West Indies weren’t a whole lot better in the second game until the experienced Kieron Pollard came on and showed his team how it was done. In the end they restricted Ireland to a below par score, but were denied the chance to go for it by the rain, much to their frustration. A repeat of that effort is required here.
It will be interesting to see how West Indies go about their work in this match, especially if they are batting first. We know this is a tough ground to defend so if they come hard they are likely to have plenty of success, but with that comes risk, as we saw in the one over or so that they were able to bat for in the previous game. There is nothing wrong with their batting though so if the rain stays away West Indies will be confident of winning.
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Ireland
You have to say Ireland have been fantastic in the series so far, but at the same time we shouldn’t ignore the obvious issue that repeated itself in both games, which is them ending their batting innings sloppily on both occasions. Part of that is not having a set or recognised batsmen in those key overs and a bit of it is a little element of panic which has set in. If they can finish their innings strongly and maximise their score, they are right on track.
Where the real surprise has come so far is how well Ireland have done with the ball. It is not easy to keep to your plans when a team like the West Indies are coming at you so they deserve a lot of credit for doing so, and in a World T20 year, you would think that is something that would serve them well. If they can take this match against the odds and win the series 2-0 it would send out some message for that tournament.
Betting
We were well on track to see a 13.5 sixes line covered here on Saturday night and that was with Ireland batting first and not really putting up the biggest score in the world so I am absolutely amazed that the same line is being offered again here. I don’t really need to say much more than I did ahead of the game on Saturday night in terms of the hitters we have on show in this match, and when you think the likes of Kevin O’Brien haven’t come to the party yet, there is more to come.
Warner Park is an incredibly small ground by modern standards and when you factor in the breeze which often covers the ground hitting the ball out the park is not difficult at all. These two sides have plenty of hitters in their ranks, the pitch played fine on Saturday night and the conditions suit big hitting. I’ll go with the same bet I did in the previous game in the hope it has the chance to land this time.
Tips
WON – Back Over 13.5 sixes for a 5/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
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