 "India are yet to lose a match in the T20 World Cup so far, having won four out of five games with one ending in a washout. AP")
Saturday, 22 June will witness Team India take on Bangladesh hoping to inch closer to a place in the T20 World Cup semi-finals while co-hosts West Indies fight for survival after their lopsided defeat at the hands of defending champions England when they face USA.
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India and West Indies enter Saturday’s fixtures on the back of contrasting results. The Men in Blue thrashed Afghanistan by 47 runs after posting 181 — their highest total of the tournament so far with Suryakumar Yadav (53) and Jasprit Bumrah (3/7) leading the way.
West Indies posted a similar total in St Lucia on Wednesday, only for England to chase it down with eight wickets and more than two overs to spare thanks to Phil Salt’s unbeaten 87 off 47 balls and his unbeaten 97-run partnership with Jonny Bairstow.
We take a look at Wednesday’s fixtures in a little more detail below:
Match 46: USA vs West Indies in Barbados
Friday will witness the tournament co-hosts USA and West Indies lock horns for the first time in the ongoing tournament, something that had been considered unlikely until the Americans stunned Pakistan in Dallas earlier this month.
Both USA and West Indies lost their opening Super 8 encounters, though the Americans deserve credit for putting up a much better fight. The US gave South Africa a scare after being set a daunting 195-run target in Antigua, ultimately finishing at 176/6 to suffer an 18-run loss with the South African-born Andries Gous scoring an unbeaten 80 to take the game deep.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsWest Indies, meanwhile, barely put up a fight against England after posting a competitive 181-run target in St Lucia, suffering their first defeat of the tournament after four consecutive wins. The Rovman Powell-led side currently sit at the bottom of Group 2 with a Net Run Rate of -1.343. Not only will they need to defeat US to keep their semi-final hopes alive, they will need to win by a sizeable margin to improve their NRR.
USA vs West Indies will be played at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados at 6 am IST
Match 47: India vs Bangladesh in Antigua
India enjoy a solid record against Bangladesh in T20Is, having beaten the Tigers four times in as many meetings in T20 World Cups and leading them 12-1 in the shortest format, and enter Saturday’s clash as the favourites.
Rohit Sharma’s men, however, will be wary of the threat that the Najmul Hossain Shanto-led side pose; the Tigers after all had nearly beaten India on their own turf during their T20 World Cup clash in Bengaluru eight years ago, only to suffer a one-run loss in the end following a dramatic conclusion.
India defeated Afghanistan by 47 runs in Barbados on Thursday, bowling the Rashid Khan-led side out for 134 after setting them a challenging 182 to win.
The Bangladeshis, meanwhile, began their Super 8s campaign with a defeat against 2021 champions Australia, suffering a 28-run loss (DLS Method) in a rain-affected encounter in Antigua on Thursday.
India vs Bangladesh will be played at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua at 8 pm IST