CRICKET BLOG FOR THE FANS, BY THE FANS

If the first matches of these two teams in the Tri-series were anything to go by, Zimbabwe are in for another tough outing. A tough time for Zimbabwe up against South Africa and Australia in a triangular series was always going to be on the cards, but it’s important that they show some fight, competitiveness and progress after being thrashed by 198 runs at the hands of Australia in their opening match. South Africa, on the other hand, proved my prediction wrong against Australia and chased 327 with ease. In addition, they are fresh off a 3-0 ODI series sweep against the Zimbabweans.

With conditions difficult for the bowlers, backing South Africa for another good outing with the bat is wise. This is even more appropriate considering Zimbabwe have stood down arguably their most economical seamer Tinashe Panyangara, on disciplinary terms. Therefore, South Africa will be keen to stamp their authority and make life even more difficult for Zimbabwe. This seems likely as South Africa are coming off 5 straight ODI wins. Zimbabwe are coming off 6 straight defeats.

Despite all signs pointing to a one-sided hammering,  my interest in this match relies on how much fight Zimbabwe can show in front of their home fans. At home in recent times, Zimbabwe have been a tougher nut to crack than some people expected. In 2013, they beat (at that time) high flying Bangladesh 2-1 & won the first ODI of the series against Pakistan (and even won a Test against Pakistan on the same tour). Unfortunately for them, they don’t play very often and haven’t been to build on their good wins as a result. However, here’s a chance to lay a platform for their future with a better showing than what they’ve dished up so far in the last few weeks

South Africa’s only main threat in this match is complacency but there are players in this side who’d want to prove their worth:
South African batsman to watch: Quinton De Kock burst onto the scene with plenty of runs against India last year and had a good series against Zimbabwe recently scoring 63, 38 and 84 in the 3 matches. After scoring just 19 against Australia, he’d want to get back into the runs here.
South African bowler to watch: Imran Tahir averages 17.16 in the 50 over format, compared to a Test average of over 47. His consistency has always come under scrutiny but here’s a chance for Imran to back up his excellent showing against Australia and show some consistency in his performances.

Zimbabwe are seeking improvement and would want to push South Africa as much as they possibly can:
Zimbabwean batsmen to watch: I’ve picked two players from the Zimbabwean team who need to perform. Brendan Taylor needs to remind selectors of his class after being dropped for the 3rd ODI against South Africa recently and Hamilton Masakadza will want to build on his impressive effort against the Australians where he scored 70 out of his team’s 152. These two players have played a combined 289 ODIs and need to step up here if they are to have any hope of causing an upset.
Zimbabwean bowler to watch: Prosper Utseya faces testing on his action but he needs to put that behind him for now. 157 ODIs with an economy rate of 4.34 runs per over is impressive and will need to be economical here to restrict the South Africans.

Prediction: I expect Zimbabwe to put on more of a fight in this game, but the gulf in class between the two sides is too great. South Africa to make it 2 out of 2 wins in this triangular series.

Yes, another contest between two teams I don’t like. England and India fans, understand that I’m Australian and that’s just normal. Nonetheless, this is a chance to see how England and India are going ahead of the World Cup in about 6 months time (after the 1st ODI was washed out, in England, how surprising) in conditions where the bowlers are bound to get some assistance just as you expect they would in Australia & New Zealand.

I’m interested to see how these two sides go. For India, I’m looking forward to see how they fare in the limited overs stuff after playing England into form with horrible performances in the last 3 games of the Test series. After all, they are the current World champions and winners of the Champions Trophy in England. A side with players as good as Virat Kohli, despite his well documented run of poor form, will always be a danger in this format. For England, how will they respond to comments from Graeme Swann and Michael Vaughan regarding their World Cup credentials and their style of play in the ODI format? Personally, I agree that their style is a little old fashioned and they do use Test form to select players in the Test team. For example, Steven Finn has been super for England in ODI cricket – in fact, he was the shining light for England when thrashed 5-0 in India in 2011 and yet has lost his ODI place on the back of poor performances in Tests. Players like Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan need to be nurtured and supported to make sure they play their best as natural strokemakers in the side.

In ODIs between these two sides in England, the home side has the edge, winning the 5 match series 3-0 in 2011, that too after thumping India 4-0 in the Tests. An interesting clash awaits here as to see how much England’s confidence has improved since the home series against Sri Lanka and how India will fare in an overseas away series after they found things difficult in New Zealand earlier in the year.

Player to watch from England: Alex Hales – Immense potential and great strokemaker. If he’s out early, then it’s up to Cook and Bell to rebuild and that might mean the run rate stalls for a little while early in the innings. Hales’ contribution is vital.

Player to watch from India: Virat Kohli – Who else? Finally got some runs under his belt in the tour game vs Middlesex and will be looking to put a horror Test series behind him. He’s back in the format where he has scored 19 centuries at 52.16 in 134 games.

Prediction: India seem to have the stronger team on paper and enjoy the ODI format more than they do Tests. However, what I saw from them in New Zealand as well as their disappointing Asia Cup campaign creates doubts not only in my mind but surely those of Indian supporters. I pick England to win in a tight game as they are more accustomed to the conditions and seem more stable than the Indians at the moment.

A match up which doesn’t involve the hosts yet promises the most. Two of the ODI heavyweights and contenders for next year’s World Cup take each other on in a match up that promises to be a beauty after both sides have been loving life against Zimbabwe.

Both sides possess strong bowling attacks, strong batting line-ups and simply awesome fielders such as Glenn Maxwell of Australia and AB De Villiers of South Africa. Australia’s tour of South Africa earlier this year consisted of no ODIs but the Test series was enthralling viewing. Also, South Africa have won three of the last four ODI series against Australia, adding to the rivarly between the two sides which makes for an exciting contest in Harare.

I recently picked up on a tweet about this match up which sums this contest up perfectly by @R_4rishabh
Johnson v Steyn, Maxwell v Miller, Bailey v AB, Starc v Morkel. There promises to be wonderful battles between the two side’s batsmen and bowlers:

Batsmen to watch:
Despite Phillip Hughes’ amazing form in List A cricket recently, Glenn Maxwell is a player who simply does not care who he is facing. Zimbabwe were helpless against him, as he smashed a 46 ball 93 on the way to helping Australia post 350-6. Pakistan, West Indies, India, England and Zimbabwe have been on the end of Maxwell’s onslaughts. Are South Africa next?

For South Africa, AB De Villiers has had a substandard tour so far, dating back to the Test match South Africa played in Harare against Zimbabwe. His disappointment was compounded by an embarrassing dismissal in the 2nd ODI against Zimbabwe and hasn’t really got going. However, I consider him to be the best all-round batsman in the world and expect him to come good soon. As an Australian, I hope it’s not in this game.

Bowlers to watch:
Simple. Dale Steyn v Mitchell Johnson. Two of the most feared bowlers in world cricket looking to make an impact on ODI cricket like they have in Test cricket ahead of the 2015 world cup. Makes for a wonderful contest.

Prediction: Should be a close game with two evenly matched sides coming together with so many great individual contests to look out for. However, I feel Australia has the better ODI side and back them to win a tight one to continue their push for silverware ahead of the World Cup.

As a huge Bangladesh fan, 2014 has been a terrible year. 14 ODIs, 13 defeats with one no result and a poor World T20 campaign at home. You know it’s been a bad year when the highlight is beating Afghanistan and Nepal in the World T20 qualifying stage to just about seal passage through to the main stage despite a humiliating defeat to Hong Kong. The West Indies, on the other hand will be looking to build on their 3-0 ODI triumph as well as their semi final appearance in the World T20.

Ahead of this one off T20 International, it pains me to say that all the signs are pointing towards a comfortable West Indies win. They have the power with the likes of Chris Gayle, Darren Sammy and Kieron Pollard, the bowlers who have done well in this format such as Sunil Narine and most importantly, the confidence and T20 know-how. Bangladesh, on the other hand have struggled in T20 internationals for quite some time, even when they were performing really well in ODIs in 2012 and 2013. This match can hurt Bangladesh’s confidence even more if they aren’t on their game.

From a batting point of view, the West Indies have the ability to send chills down any bowling lineup’s spine. Just ask the Australian team about what they went through in the World T20 against a fired up Windies side. Below is a summary comparing career averages and strike rates of the batsmen I consider most important in each side: West Indies – Chris Gayle: Avg 32.60, SR 135.55; Kieron Pollard: Avg 22.14 SR 146.56, Darren Sammy: Avg 16.65 SR 151.88 Bangladesh – Tamim Iqbal: Avg 20.93 SR 105.98, Nasir Hossain: Avg 23.13 SR 116.44, Mushfiqur Rahim: Avg 19.34 SR 117.24 It’s easy to see why the West Indies have had T20I success over the last few years with the strike rates that these players have. Chris Gayle can provide a blistering start, Pollard can continue that in the middle overs and Sammy has proven to be a wonderful finisher. This, against a moderate bowling attack that has generally struggled to keep the runs down in T20Is, along with the absence of Shakib Al Hasan, the St. Kitts crowd could be in for something special.

Bangladesh lack the power that the West Indies possess but if they are to have any chance, they have to reduce the number of dot balls they play. In ODIs this year, they’ve struggled to rotate the strike and this creeps into their T20 games. It’s not good enough to score a 4 or 6 and have 3 or 4 dot balls afterwards – you don’t make use of your boundaries well enough. This is why I suggest Bangladesh put Nasir Hossain at 3 or 4, he’s excellent at accumulating runs and scoring quickly without taking too many risks and he can be key in the middle overs especially against Sunil Narine who has tormented the Bangladeshi batsmen so far. Tamim Iqbal is also one to watch, he has the ability to score quickly and cause headaches for bowling attacks in the absence of Shakib and for Bangladesh’s sake, they’d be hoping he does that in St Kitts. In addition, if captain Mushfiqur Rahim spends time in the middle, he’s in for a fine score as he’s good at rotating the strike and striking big in the final overs.

Big Picture: The West Indies are rightly hot favourites to take out this lone T20 International. They are playing with more confidence than their opponents and have a number of batsmen and bowlers than can turn the match in their team’s favour. For Bangladesh, they have to be near perfect – take early wickets, bowl well at the death and keep the runs ticking with the bat if they are any chance to challenge the West Indies here. If Bangladesh are off their game (which looks likely considering their last two ODI performances), the West Indies will canter to an easy win.

My Prediction: Despite being a massive Bangladesh fan, I fear the worst here. If the West Indies bat first, expect a win by 35+ runs. If they bat second, expect a win with time to spare.