The most organised of the associate nation is going to face a full member who were a power house of cricket once and now on the decline. If Ireland can be related to consistency among associates, West Indies can be related to erratic and inconsistent performance among the full members. If we see the ICC rankings there is very little to choose between the two teams.
Ireland made their first appearance in this tournament just eight years ago while West Indies were the world champions for 8 consecutive years. Ireland has a cheeky Caribbean connection. Their first appearance in this tournament in 2007 was in the Caribbean. It was a fairy tale outing then, when they caught the attention of the world by first tieing with Zimbabwe and later beating Pakistan to progress to the Super Eights. The other West Indian connection is their coach Phil Simmons who has been with them since 2007. He will know a lot about quiet a few players in West Indies team.
With West Indies losing to Scotland and Ireland winning against Bangladesh in warm-up games, Ireland would feel confident against this full member. West Indies, although not the strongest but has match winners who can change the course of the game on their day. Of late these match winners have not been able to win matches for them and Ireland is definitely a team that could take advantage of such form of the team. Their victory against England in 2011 is a testimony to that.
Ireland made their first appearance in this tournament just eight years ago while West Indies were the world champions for 8 consecutive years. Ireland has a cheeky Caribbean connection. Their first appearance in this tournament in 2007 was in the Caribbean. It was a fairy tale outing then, when they caught the attention of the world by first tieing with Zimbabwe and later beating Pakistan to progress to the Super Eights. The other West Indian connection is their coach Phil Simmons who has been with them since 2007. He will know a lot about quiet a few players in West Indies team.
With West Indies losing to Scotland and Ireland winning against Bangladesh in warm-up games, Ireland would feel confident against this full member. West Indies, although not the strongest but has match winners who can change the course of the game on their day. Of late these match winners have not been able to win matches for them and Ireland is definitely a team that could take advantage of such form of the team. Their victory against England in 2011 is a testimony to that.
Ireland's top order has not been doing great recently but in Ed Joyce and William Porterfield, Ireland have dependable batsmen. Kevin O’ Brien is a fearless batsman and can rip up any attack on his day. In-form Andy Balbirnie will provide the additional solidity to the batting line up. In Mooney they have a very good all-rounder. Max Sorensen (taking 3 for 31 in the victory over Bangladesh), a late call-up to the squad after Tim Murtagh was injured may be part of the playing eleven with Craig Young and George Dockrell in the bowling department. Couple of things that would bother them are the number of wides Irish bowlers are conceding and losing wickets in clusters while batting.
On the other hand West Indies languishing at no. 8 in the ICC rankings has lot of things to address. Their batting line up is very vulnerable to say the least. Their star batsman Chris Gayle's one-day form over the last two years is miserable. But his sheer presence on the crease is intimidating to the opposition and his ability to devastate the opposition attack provides a psychological advantage. Marlon Samuels with Darren Bravo should add stability to the middle order. With New Zealand pitches assisting spin, they will have to take a call on whether to include Suleiman Benn or rely on Marlong Samuels to provide the spin option. Absence of players like Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine and Keiron Pollard is a big blow to the team but nothing much can be done on that.
All said, both the teams begin their campaign tomorrow and hence will like to start on a winning note. Whatever be the ability of Ireland to cause an upset , however difficult it may be to choose between the two teams, West Indies would definitely start as favourite.
All said, both the teams begin their campaign tomorrow and hence will like to start on a winning note. Whatever be the ability of Ireland to cause an upset , however difficult it may be to choose between the two teams, West Indies would definitely start as favourite.
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