Can West Indies beat Sri Lanka in their last league match in the World Cup Qualifiers?
We could not have asked for a better encounter to end the super six round of the ongoing ICC ODI Cricket World Cup Qualifiers 2023 in Zimbabwe, which is now down to its penultimate match. On Friday, July 7, 2023, at 12:30 p.m. IST, Sri Lanka and the West Indies will square off in an intense match at the Harare Sports Club.
The West Indies and Sri Lanka were the favourites to qualify for the World Cup in India before making the cut for direct qualification. Sri Lanka played well and qualified for the World Cup easily, but the West Indies did not live up to expectations and failed to qualify for the big tournament.
Although this game will not have any bearing on the tournament or the World Cup in October, it will still be one to watch because both of these teams are known for their nail-biting face-offs.
The West Indies won their first Super Six match against Oman in the last game. The main problem they have faced is leaving the match open from a very strong position. First, Zimbabwe and the Netherlands defeated them in group games, and then Scotland emerged victorious against them in the super six-round match.
Sri Lanka also faced an upset scare in a few matches, but they showed composure and emerged as the winning team in all their matches. Their bowlers have been right on the money the whole tournament.
Sri Lanka is likely to go in with the same playing 11 and not make any changes to the winning combination unless there is a forced change. The West Indies will be without Jason Holder and Alzarri Joseph, who have left Zimbabwe to stay fresh for the series against India.
Since this is the final game for both of these squads, we anticipate that they will bat first and come out swinging, scoring as many runs as they can. Given that they have absolutely nothing to lose, we anticipate that the West Indies will perform better on the pitch. At the beginning of the tournament, Sri Lanka losing this match would not have been a big deal, but in the current situation, it would be considered an upset.
