ENG vs WI second T20I Preview | England look to continue winning run as Windies keen to arrest free fall

‌England will look to notch up their fifth straight win over West Indies when both sides clash in the second game of the five-match T20I series at the County Ground in Bristol on Sunday. With England sealing the three-match ODI series with an emphatic 3-0 result and then going on to win the first T20I comfortably by 21 runs, the visitors will have an unenviable job of notching up their first win on tour.

Wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler came up with a special knock of 96 off 59 balls to help the host put a formidable total on the board after batting first. However, England will be aware of the fact that the other batters will have to come up with a collective show to continue their dominant run over the visitors. Only Jamie Smith had a good show with the bat apart from Buttler as he scored a 20-ball 38 after opening the batting.

Meanwhile, the 35-year-old Liam Dawson will look to continue his dream comeback for England after picking up a Player of the Match winning spell of 4/20 on his return to England colours after 30 months. The left-arm spinner was impressive both with the new ball and during the middle phase as he picked up wickets at frequent intervals to scuttle the Windies’ chase.

On the other hand, the visitors will look to start afresh after their forgettable performance on Friday and translate the firepower that they possess into meaningful results. The side boasts of a plethora of hard hitters and can bat deep, both invaluable virtues in the shortest form of the game. But still, it fell like a pack of cards with six of the nine wickets falling to the left-arm spin pair of Dawson and Jacob Bethell.

Evin Lewis’ knock at the top of the order and Romario Shepherd who picked up two wickets with the ball were the only positives in an otherwise dismal show. The Windies team management would hope that the quartet of Andre Russell, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell and Shepherd fire on all cylinders to level the series and bring them back into reckoning.

Form Guide

ENG Form: LWLLW

WI Form: NRLLLL

ENG vs WI head-to-head in T20Is

West Indies hold a slight advantage over England in their head-to-head meetings in T20Is with 18 wins compared to 17 in 36 meetings with one game being abandoned without any result. However, England have the momentum behind them after their convincing win in the first T20I in Durham on Friday to add to their 3-1 victory in a five-match T20I series in West Indies in November 2024.

ENG 17 - 18 WI

Pitch and Conditions

The County Ground in Bristol will host its seventh T20I, the first in close to three years when England welcomes West Indies for the second game of the five-match duel. It is expected to be a high-scoring venue with a surface and a good outfield conducive to shot makers. At least one team has gone past the 200-run mark in three of the last four matches played here with England’s 234/6 against South Africa in the first of a three-match T20I series in July 2022 being the highest score registered. Out of the total six matches, three have been won by sides batting first while three have been won by chasing teams.

It will be a breezy day at Bristol tomorrow with clouds and sunshine alternating and temperatures expected to be around 18 degrees and the probability of rain being 25%. It will continue to be partly cloudy in the evening with the temperatures dropping to 12 degrees and the chances of rain coming down to 5%.

Team News

England is expected to retain their winning combination and go in with the same team while West Indies may bring back opener Brandon King and left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein, who missed the first T20I due to visa issues, in place of Johnson Charles and Gudakesh Motie.

ENG Expected XI

Harry Brook (c), Tom Banton, Jos Buttler, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Brydon Carse, Adil Rashid, Matthew Potts

WI Expected XI

Shai Hope (c & wk), Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph

Broadcasting Platforms 

The ENG vs WI second T20I match will be digitally streamed on the SonyLiv app and website in India with the telecast on the Sony Sports Network from 7:00 PM IST on Sunday.