West Indies vs Pakistan, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, Today Match Prediction 31 May 2019

windies vs pak Match Prediction & Analysis

Resurgent West Indies will be looking to start their campaign on a decent note when they face Pakistan in the second game of ICC Cricket World Cup in Nottingham on Friday.

Jason Holder and co. managed to register a morale-boosting win over New Zealand in the warm-up game played at County Ground in Bristol. With this performance, there is no doubt that the West Indies cannot take lightly as they aim to do well in this competition.

On the other hand, Pakistan will be desperate to their end their losing streak in white-ball cricket. The side will under pressure after suffering consecutive defeats against Australia and then England.

TEAMS PREVIEW

West Indies Preview

The side has certainly made improvements in white-ball cricket in the last six months. Jason Holder has done an excellent job in the captaincy role and will be hoping that West Indies can get off to a decent start in this World Cup.

In the batting department, the side will be relying on the likes of Chris Gayle, Shai Hope and Shimron Hetymer to put the bulk of runs on the board. Left-hander has delivered impressive numbers in white-ball cricket this season and scored 424 runs at an average of 106.00.  He smashed a quick-fire 36 off 22 balls to see West Indies got off to a decent start against New Zealand in the warm-up game.

Pugnacious opener Evin Lewis also looked in touch with the bat and scored a half-century with the help of six fours. He put on a crucial partnership with Shai Hope to see West Indies placed in a strong position to post a mammoth score on the board.

Wicket-keeper Shai Hope has been a consistent performer for West Indies in limited-overs cricket. He smashed a scintillating century and held the innings together for West Indies in the warm-up game. Hope scored 101 off 86 balls with the help of nine fours and four sixes.

Darren Bravo and Shimron Hetmyer will be looking to do well in this opening game of the World Cup. Hetmyer is a promising talent who will be keen to make an impact in his debut game in the showpiece event.

Captain Jason Holder scored 47 off 32 balls with the help of three fours and three sixes to push West Indies score beyond close to 400 runs. All-rounder Andre Russell smashed a breathtaking 54 not out off 25 balls with the help of seven fours and three sixes.

In the bowling department, the side will be relying on the likes of Sheldon Cottrell, Jason Holder and Jason Holder to make early inroads with the new-ball. Carlos Brathwaite and Ashley Nurse are other prominent bowling options for this game.

West Indies Predicted Playing XI:

Jason Holder (captain), Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope (wk), Kemar Roach, Darren Bravo, Andre Russell, Ashley Nurse, Evin Lewis, Sheldon Cottrell, Oshane Thomas/ Fabian Allen.

West Indies Actual Playing XI:

Darren Bravo, Carlos Brathwaite, Nicholas Pooran, Oshane Thomas, Ashley Nurse, Jason Holder, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Chris Gayle, Andre Russell

Pakistan Preview

On the other hand, Pakistan will need to put in an exceptional performance to upstage West Indies in this game. The side failed to win a single against England in the recently concluded one-day series. Captain Sarfaraz Ahmed will be looking to lead from the front and turn things around for Pakistan in this World Cup.

In the batting department, the side will be depending on the likes of Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam to do the bulk of the scoring against West Indies. The opening pair of Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq looked in good form against England and smashed centuries for the side in the recently concluded one-day series.

Babar Azam has been in excellent form and smashed a century against Afghanistan in the warm-up game played at Country Ground in Bristol. Middle-order comprising of Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik and wicket-keeper Sarfaraz Ahmed will need to produce runs for the side in this game.

In the bowling department, the side will be reliant on the likes of Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali and Mohammad Amir to deliver breakthroughs with new-ball. Shadab khan and Imad Wasim will be a prominent spin option for the side for this game.

Pakistan Predicted Playing XI:

Fakhar Zaman, Sarfaraz Ahmed (captain &wk), Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Imam-ul-Haq, Imad Wasim, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Shadab Khan.

Pakistan Actual Playing XI:

Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Amir, SI Wasim, Babar Azam, F Zaman, Hasan Ali, Haris Sohail, Wahab Riaz, Shadab Khan, Sarfraz Ahmed, Imam-ul-Haq

Weather Conditions

The wicket prepared for the game will be excellent for batting. The quick bowlers will need to a lot of variations to take wickets on this placid surface. The weather forecast for the game will be cloudy skies with a moderate breeze.

Venue

In recent times, Trent Bridge has witnessed a lot of high-scoring games in the 50-over format. West Indies will take heart from the fact they have an excellent head-to-head against Pakistan in the World Cup competition. In 2015 Cricket World Cup, West Indies beat Pakistan by 150 runs in a game played in Christchurch.

Toss: To Bat

The side that wins the toss would be keen to bat first and put runs on the board. The average score has been around 350 runs in the last five completed one-day games. Earlier this month, Pakistan played a one-day game against England at this venue.