FANTASY
Follow UsIn a bid to draw level in the four-match T20 International (T20I) series, West Indies take on Pakistan in the third game at the Providence Stadium, Guyana. As Pakistan edged West Indies in a closely fought contest on Saturday (July 31) by seven runs, the hosts will look to bounce back quickly.
Pakistan have dominated the two-time T20 World champions, having won 12 out of the 16 matches, while West Indies have won just thrice. In the last five encounters, Pakistan have won four, with one match – the first T20I in Barbados – yielding no result.
In fact, the last time West Indies beat Pakistan was in the 2014 World T20 in Mirpur. Since then, Pakistan have won 12 T20Is against West Indies, which includes 10 wins in a row.
T20I head-to-head
Overall: Matches 16 | West Indies 3 wins | Pakistan 12 wins | NR 1
Last five matches: West Indies 0 | Pakistan 4 | NR 1
Suggested team
While you could go for the above team, you also have the option of choosing your own team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Based on your preferences, the platform will guide you to create the ideal fantasy XI.
Ground details and team combination
While the pacers picked up nine out of the 10 wickets (excluding run-outs) in the first T20I, it was the spinners who kept the runs down. In fact, the wicket of Andre Fletcher, picked up by Mohammad Hafeez was the only wicket that was picked up by a spinner in the match.
However, with two games in a row, there could be some more wear and tear on the track, which could pave way for the spinners to have a little more of the wicket share. Hence, including Hafeez, we have gone for two more wicket-taking spinners in Hayden Walsh and Akeal Hosein in our team, even though they did not pick up a single wicket between them in the previous game.
Historically, however, the Providence has favoured the pacers with a percentage of 62-38 split in T20Is. While the pacers have picked up a wicket every 19 runs and 16.1 balls apart, the corresponding numbers for the spinners happen to be 22.7 and 21.2 respectively.
As mentioned earlier, the spinners (6.4) have been a little more economical than the pacers (7.1), but it is the wickets that give you points in fantasy cricket hence, we recommend you to stock your team with one extra pacer or an equal amount of both would also be fine.
Captain selection
Mohammad Rizwan has had a phenomenal year, which has seen him beat Paul Stirling’s record of registering the most runs in T20Is in a calendar year. His 46 in the previous match saw him go to 752 runs at 94 this year, in which he has also scored seven fifties and one century. Rizwan, who led Multan Sultans to their maiden PSL title earlier this year, has been Pakistan’s mainstay with the bat since his return and the fact that he is a terrific wicketkeeper further pushes his case to lead your fantasy side.
Our Criclytics Player projector predicts Rizwan could fetch 50-82 fantasy points in this match
X-Factors
Nicholas Pooran has blown hot and cold in the recent matches, but there’s no denying that he is a terrific talent in the side and can turn the match on its heads in a span of a few deliveries. That’s what he did in the first T20I when he almost took West Indies home with an explosive 62 not out off just 33 deliveries – his first fifty in 2021. This could be the knock that turns things around for Pooran, who will look to help his team draw level in what is effectively a three-match series, following a washout in Barbados.
Our Criclytics Player projector predicts Pooran could fetch 34-51 fantasy points in this match
Hasan Ali has had a terrific 2021, which has seen him accumulate 17 wickets at 14.64 from in T20Is. His economy rate of 7.86 and balls per wicket ratio of 11.1 is not too bad either. His strength is his pace, which is consistently over the 140 KMPH mark and if he can get the ball moving, he is all the more deadly.
Our Criclytics Player projector predicts Hasan could fetch 9-39 fantasy points in this match
Jason Holder is proving to be a handy T20 cricketer. He fared well in the brief stints he had in the BBL and IPL to go with his consistent performances in the CPL. That has seemed to have benefitted him as he went on register his best bowling figures of 4 for 26 in the previous game. Not to forget, Holder is a brutal hitter as well and could tonk a few big ones at the death if he is needed.
Our Criclytics Player projector predicts Holder could fetch 67-99 fantasy points in this match
