Eng Vs WI – 1st Test (8/7/2020)

The last International Cricket game happened between Australia and New Zealand on 13th March 2020, and after exactly 137 days, the next International match is going to happen between England and West Indies, on the 8th of July, 2020!
Due to the pandemic of Covid-19, all sporting events were on hold, and gradually resuming in the countries where the situation is normal.

We resume international cricketing action with a 3 match Test series between England and West Indies, the first of which is to be held at Southampton between the two sides, both with the most furious seam bowling attack!

Probable XIs –

Eng – Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley, Ollie Pope, Joe Denly, Zak Crawley, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Dominic Bess, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, James Anderson

On Bench – Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes

WI – Kraigg Brathwaite, Shamarh Brooks, Shai Hope, Roston Chase, Jermaine Blackwood, Shane Dowrich, Jason Holder, Rakheem Cornwall, Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, Alzarri Joseph

On Bench – Raymon Reifer, Chemar Holder, John Campbell, Nkrumah Bonner

Pitch Report –

The Rose Bowl was traditionally best suited for spinners, but looking at both squads, i figure that the surface has turned out to have that extra zip in it, due to the absence of matches over the past few months, for the seamers to take advantage of.

Analysis –

1. The batting of both teams just have one experienced player each, i.e., Hope and Buttler, while the remaining are newcomers and haven’t had a lot of International experience, so it would be great watching them take on the amazing seam attack of the opponent team.
2. Both teams have some quality All Rounders in the form of Stokes and Chase who are reliable batsmen as well as wicket taking bowlers, and a battle between them would be great to watch!
3. With the experienced seam attack and a comparatively inexperienced batting lineup, this test match might turn out to be a great game for the bowlers to shine.
4. England have NEVER lost a Test Match out of the Three they’ve played at this venue, and definitely seem to be the favourites for this battle as well.

Prediction –

England would win the first test match, and the top 2 players for both teams would be Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Roston Chase and Jason Holder