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WI vs Aus | 4th T20I: Australia look to salvage some pride after surrendering series

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The visiting Australian side will look to salvage some pride when they meet West Indies in the fourth encounter at St Lucia on Thursday, 15 July. Ever since making a dramatic comeback in the opening encounter, West Indies have been all over the Australians and there has been no way back for them. 


Ever since winning the 2016 T20 World Cup, West Indies did fall off the radar resulting in their decline in the latest T20I rankings. However, with the showpiece event around the horizon, the team seems to be gelling at the right moment. With another five-match series against Pakistan being lined up, the Caribbean outfit is looking in great shape to defend their world title. 


The majority of the opening encounter was dominated by the Aussies but they lost their plot in the final few overs of the match surrendering the advantage and allowing West Indies to claw their way back and clinch a sensational come-from-behind victory. Since then, it has been a thoroughly professional performance from the home team with the batting and the bowling unit performing as a unit. 


Chris Gayle’s return to form is a massive boost to the defending world champions while the middle order which failed to live up to their expectations in the series against the Proteas has finally found some much-needed form. 


Shimron Hetmyer scored a match-winning half-century in the second encounter but it has been Andre Russell’s firepower that has provided the much-needed impetus to the home team and resulted in their unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series. 


The bowling department has been bolstered with the return of leg-spinner Hayden Walsh Jr who has been the most successful bowler in the series so far. He has been at his deceptive best bagging 8 wickets in just 3 matches. Obed McCoy has continued his dream run in the series but has been pegged by an injury. With Dwayne Bravo leading the attack, the bowling department looks very settled but with the series already done and dusted, the home team might be looking at changing a few combinations going into the final two matches. 


On the other hand, Australia have struggled with their inexperienced batting line-up. The only experiment which has worked so far is sending Mitchell Marsh to bat at No 3. He smashed two back to back half-centuries in the first two matches but that wasn’t enough to get his side over the line. 


Australia have been nowhere close to their best but the reality is they are missing the services of some of their top players. While skipper Aaron Finch hinted at some harsh calls ahead of the showpiece event later this year, the below-par performance in the first three matches might force the Australian team management to bring back all their first-choice players for the World Cup slated to be played in October-November in UAE. 


The middle-order remains a serious concern for the Aussies but that might be solved once everybody is available for selection. The pace bowling cartel led by Mitchell Starc has shown their class but have lacked consistency. Josh Hazlewood had a wonderful time with the ball in the opening encounter but received some serious stick at the hands of Chris Gayle in the last game. 


Match Details

West Indies vs Australia, 4th T20I

Venue: Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia

Date & Time: July 15th, at 5:00 AM IST and July 14th, at 7:30 PM Local Time

Live Streaming: Fancode

Pitch Report and Toss 

The strip at St Lucia has always been a belter and it was no different in the second and the third T20I in the ongoing series. While the pitch for the opening match was a bit two-paced with run-scoring becoming difficult as the game progressed. However, in the next two encounters, the pitch was pretty good to bat on. While the Aussies struggled, the home team made hay with commanding batting performances. Despite teams batting first winning the first two matches, chasing is always a better option on this ground. 

Weather forecast 

The temperature is expected to hover around 27 degrees during match time with very little chances of rain for the course of the day. In all likelihood, we should be in for a full 40 overs. 

Team News 

West Indies 

Obed McCoy left the field after bowling just one over in the previous encounter and it is believed that he is nursing an injury. Veteran speedster Fidel Edwards who replaced McCoy in the second match is also unavailable due to an injury that presents a chance to Oshane Thomas to have look in. 

Kieron Pollard is yet to recover and Nicholas Pooran will continue leading the side. The rest of the XI is expected to remain the same as the previous assignment. Meanwhile, if Evin Lewis is fit enough to play, Andre Fletcher might make way for him at the top of the order. 

Latest news- Obed McCoy and Shimron Hetmyer have been rested from the last two matches and Akeal Hosein and Kevin Sinclair have been named as their replacements. Both McCoy and Hetmyer were nursing minor injuries and the team management doesn't want to risk them especially with the series already won.

Probable Playing XI 

Lendl Simmons, Evin Lewis, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, Nicholas Pooran (c & wk), Fabian Allen, Hayden Walsh Jr, Oshane Thomas, Sheldon Cottrell.

Australia 

With the series already done and dusted, the visiting side looks to tinker with their combination in the two inconsequential matches. Ben McDermott and Ashton Agar who missed the previous encounter owing to injuries might return to the XI subject to their fitness ahead of the encounter. Alex Carey who replaced Joshua Philippe in the middle order might retain his place for the 4th encounter. 

Probable Playing XI 

Aaron Finch (c), Matthew Wade (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Moises Henriques, Ashton Turner/Ben McDermott, Dan Christian, Mitchell Starc, Riley Meredith/Ashton Agar, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.

Fantasy/Dream11 team 

Wicket-keepers - Matthew Wade, Nicholas Pooran 

Batsmen - Chris Gayle, Lendl Simmons, Moises Henriques

All-rounders - Mitchell Marsh, Andre Russell, Dwayne Bravo

Bowlers - Hayden Walsh Jr, Josh Hazlewood, Riley Meredith 

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