Highlights:
- WI will face SA in Match No. 18 of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, after both teams lost their opening matches.
- South Africa leads West Indies 9-6 in head-to-head stats.
- South Africa has won two of three T20 world cup matches against the West Indies.
Tenda Bavuma’s South Africa will face Kieron Pollard’s West Indies in the 18th match of the ICC World Cup 2021. Both teams will be short on confidence after losing their opening matches in the championship game. While South Africa lost a tight match against Australia, the Windies were blown away by Eoin Morgan and company in their first encounter against England, when they were knocked out at just 55 runs.
South Africa continued losing wickets at regular intervals in their opening encounter against Australia, and had it not been for Aiden Markram’s 36-ball 40, the Proteas would have struggled to reach 100 runs. Skipper Bavuma looked impressive as he began the innings with two boundaries, and the team management would want him to play a captain’s knock. Quinton de Kock will also be expected to provide a massive hit for his squad.
Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, the Windies’ fast bowlers, will be expected to keep the Windies’ big hitters at bay. Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj are also anticipated to weave a web around the Windies batsmen, who suffered against England’s spinners in the last encounter.
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The Windies, who are one of the stronger teams in the tournament and possess numerous big-hitters, want to put the terrible setback against England behind them and put up a respectable performance against South Africa. Some of the biggest stars in the shortest format include Lendl Simmons, Evin Lewis, Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, and Andre Russell, and it’s important for the squad to fire as a unit. Akeal Hosein, Obed McCoy, and Ravi Rampaul will have to put in a disciplined bowling effort if the batsmen succeed in creating up a big total.
SA Vs WI Head To Head:
When it comes to overall South Africa versus West Indies head-to-head clashes, the Proteas have been dominant in the shortest format here so far, with nine victories from 15 T20Is, while the Windies have registered the remaining six wins. At the same time, South Africa has won two of its three T20 World Cup matches against the West Indies, while the two-time champions have only won one.
Top Picks for SA vs WI Match 18 ICC World Cup 2021:
Wicketkeeper: Quinton de Kock
Batsmen: Aiden Markram, Evin Lewis, Rassie van der-Dussen, Chris Gayle
All-rounders: Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, Kieron Pollard
Bowlers: R Rampaul, K Rabada, A Nortje, T Shamsi
Match Prediction:
In terms of head-to-head record, South Africa leads its opponents 9-6 and has won two of the three matches played between the two teams, with the West Indies winning one. Given the numbers of experienced players in the West Indies team, they are the odds-on favourite to win the game.