Tarouba, Jun 12
Staring at early elimination, New Zealand will look to dish out a much-improved show in a do-or-die clash against tournament co-hosts West Indies in the T20 World Cup here.
New Zealand suffered a batting collapse to be bowled out for 75 in 15.2 overs in a stunning 84-run loss to Afghanistan in their tournament-opener at the Providence Stadium.This loss dropped their run rate to -4.2, the lowest among the four teams in Group D, placing them at the bottom of the standings. Now, they find themselves on the brink of a rare group stage exit — an unexpected predicament for a team known for its remarkable consistency in World Cups, having reached the semi-finals in all six recent editions: the ODI World Cups of 2015, 2019, and 2023, and the T20 World Cups of 2016, 2021, and 2022.Having started off with a scrappy win over Papua New Guinea, WI have started to come on their own and coasted to a 134-run victory after bowling out Uganda for 39 in their previous match.
Bangladesh, Netherlands hope to stay alive
Bangladesh and the Netherlands will look to keep their Super Eight hopes alive when they lock horn in a crucial Group D fixture at Kingstown.In the group of death, South Africa have already made the cut and the fight is among the Bangladesh, Netherlands, Nepal and Sri Lanka — in that order — to book the second slot.Netherlands too are coming on the back of a reversal against South Africa and will hope to bounce back.
Rain threat for England vs Oman
Rain forecast has once again threatened to derail defending champions England who also are on the verge of an early exit and will face Oman in first of their two must wins matches at North Sound.England, who have just one point from two matches after a washout against Scotland, will face Namibia in their final group league clash at the same venue. There has been a rain forecast and Jos Buttler’s men will have a watch on the sky.Wins in both the matches may not be enough for England as Scotland (5 points from three matches) are ahead of the race.Scotland may get to seven points by virtue of a win over Australia and England’s Super Eight hopes may eventually rest on the hands of their arch-rivals.
